enough, the Shockers are thriving in their first games

ELMONT, N.Y. -- Anchor Down does his best work in one-turn-mile races at Belmont Park, something he demonstrated again Saturday with an impressive two-length victory in the Grade 2, $350,000 Kelso Handicap.Taking the lead soon after the start under Javier Castellano, Anchor Down got away with an opening quarter of 23.30 seconds but then picked up the pace, running a half-mile in 45.74, six furlongs in 1:09:05, and a mile in 1:32.90 after turning back an upper-stretch challenge from Tamarkuz.Tamarkuz finshed second by 4-1/2 lengths over Ocean Knight, who was followed by Point Piper and Tommy Macho. Upstart and Baccelo were scratched.Though the Kelso can be used as a prep for the $1 million Breeders Cup Dirt Mile, winning trainer Todd Pletcher indicated that the Grade 1 Cigar Mile at Aqueduct on Nov. 26 would be more likely for Anchor Down. The Breeders Cup Dirt Mile is a two-turn race this year at Santa Anita.I tend to think his forte is a one-turn mile, Pletcher said. Well play it by ear, wont rule anything out, but if I had to guess today, wed probably be looking more towards the Cigar Mile.If only the Cigar Mile were at Belmont, where Anchor Down won the Westchester in May and ran second to the freaky Frosted in the Grade 1 Metropolitan Handicap in the fastest clocking of that races 123-year history.The final time of the Kelso was the fastest in seven runnings of that race since it was officially moved to the dirt from the turf. It also was just 0.66 seconds off the track record set by Najran in the 2003 Westchester.Running a mile in 132-and-4 with a son of Tapit with his bottom-side [pedigree] is a big win for him, said Pletcher, who trains Anchor Down for Alto Racing.Anchor Down returned $6 as the 2-1 favorite.Tamarkuz, under Mike Smith, stalked Anchor Down all the way around the track. At the top of the stretch, Smith briefly thought he had a shot to reel in Anchor Down.He just ran a freaky race today, the winner, Smith said. I thought I had a chance to go by him, but I was watching that horses body language and his head, and he still had something left. I said, Im going to have to dig somewhere I didnt have to dig yet to get him, and I couldnt. Not today, anyway. Diamondbacks Jerseys 2019 . Team physician Dr. Steve Traina performed the surgery Friday. Robinson was injured in a spill underneath the Nuggets basket during the first quarter of Wednesday nights loss to the Charlotte Bobcats. Arizona Diamondbacks Pro Shop . PETERSBURG, Fla. https://www.cheapdiamondbacksjerseys.us/ . Just as Montreal was settling into the first full working week of a new year, the Impact announced the appointment of their new head coach. Arizona Diamondbacks Shirts . The Olympic champion curler and TSN curling analyst immediately went online to look at the Halls long list of honoured members. Thats when the enormity of the honour sunk in. Arizona Diamondbacks Store . "Theyve both been real good," said Babcock. "Havent changed our minds." A decision has seemingly been made - Sundays Group B-deciding tilt against Finland ahead - but it could not have been an easy one. Price opened the tournament with a sturdy 19-save performance against the Norwegians, yielding just one goal. PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas -- Landry Shamet is healthy again, and thats only making Wichita States balanced offense even deeper.The redshirt freshman scored 12 points in the Shockers 82-47 win against LSU on Wednesday in the opening game of the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament. That came three days after he scored 16 points in a high-scoring blowout against Maryland Eastern Shore, part of a strong start to the season after playing just three games last season due to a foot injury.It was a lot of mental stuff as well as physically trying to get myself back, Shamet said, just working really hard in the offseason to get back to where I was.Markis McDuffie scored 15 points to lead the Shockers (5-0), who dominated from the tip and scored the games first nine points to quickly turn this into a rout. And they did it much like their first four lopsided wins, with a balanced deep and offense with seemingly no shortage of scoring options.The development of Shamet, a 6-foot-4 guard from Kansas City, Missouri, will only help after spending last season observing and learning from departed program mainstays Ron Baker and Fred VanVleet.Hes very cerebral, Shockers coach Gregg Marshall said. He watched those guys, he learned from them and thats what we talked about: become a better player by watching.Coming off a 116-point outing, 12 Shockers scored while the team made 9 of 19 from 3-point range (47 percent), shot 46 percent overall and dominated the glass.Antonio Blakeney scored 12 points for the Tigers (3-1), who never recovered from that awful start. LSU didnt manage its first point until the 14:32 mark, didnt manage a basket until nearly 6 1/2 minutes in and shot 28 percent for the game.They did a great job of punching first, LSU coach Johnny Jones said, and we didnt do a great job of responding there in the first half.dddddddddddd.BIG PICTURELSU: This was hardly the start the fifth-year coach wanted in Atlantis. Picked to finish 12th in the Southeastern Conference, the Tigers were trying for their first 4-0 start since the 2012-13 season but managed little resistance as the Shockers sprinted out to the big lead.They got out to a quick start and just never looked back, junior guard Jalyn Patterson said.Wichita State: Oddly enough, the Shockers are thriving in their first games without Baker and VanVleet. Their first five wins have come by an average margin of 36 points and theyre averaging 91 points so far.FRANKAMPS FLOOR GAMEWichita State junior Conner Frankamp finished with eight points and seven assists while committing no turnovers.Hes running our team first, and then looking to score, which is the way to do it, Marshall said.TALK DEFENSE, PLEASEMarshall wasnt as interested with his teams strong offensive play as he was with holding LSU to 28 percent shooting, eventually interjecting during the postgame news conference to ask whether anyone wanted to ask about his teams defensive play.Everybody wants to talk about offense, Marshall said. Talk about defense.UP NEXTLSU: The Tigers will play the Old Dominion in the losers bracket Thursday on Day 2 of the three-day tournament.Wichita State: The Shockers advanced to Thursdays semifinals to face No. 10 Louisville, which edged Old Dominion in overtime.---Follow Aaron Beard on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/aaronbeardap---More AP college basketball at http://collegebasketball.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-Top25 ' ' '