tennis player Mardy Fish are co-favorites at 3-1. Golden Sta

TUCSON, Ariz. -- Two games in and Arizona freshman Lauri Markkanen is already drawing high praise from his coach.Lauris one of the best players in college basketball, Sean Miller said. He is. Hes a monster.The 18-year-old 7-footer from Finland scored 26 points and the 10th-ranked Wildcats held off a furious second-half rally by Cal State Bakersfield for a 78-66 victory on Tuesday night.Jaylin Airington scored 31 for the Roadrunners (1-1) and led a 17-0 run that cut Arizonas lead to four with 9:04 to play. But Markkanen sank a 3-pointer, converted a three-point play and made a short jumper to lead the Wildcats out of trouble.Markkanen is accustomed to such moments.I am used to it, he said. Pretty much my whole life, in big moments, I have the ball in my hands.The already short-handed Wildcats (2-0) were without starting senior guard Kadeem Allen, who sprained a knee in Arizonas 65-63 victory over Michigan State last Friday in Honolulu.Rawle Alkins was 4 for 6 on 3-pointers and scored 15 for the Wildcats and Kobi Simmons added 13. Both also are freshmen.Dedrick Basile added 14 for BakersfieldHaving the opportunity to play a top 10 team is going to give us an opportunity to have some confidence coming out of this game, Roadrunners coach Rod Barnes said.Airington was 10 for 25 from the field, and Miller said its hard to get 25 shots in a college game. It wasnt enough.It was a good individual effort, Airington said, but I wanted to win more than anything.Arizona was up 44-26 at the half and was cruising along when a tip-in by yet another freshman, Keanu Pinder, gave the Wildcats a 53-32 lead with 14:45 to play. Arizona didnt score for the next 6:46.The McKale Center crowd fell into an uncomfortable silence when Damine Durhams basket cut the lead to 53-49 with 9:04 to play.A ruckus under the Arizona basket finally woke the Wildcats up.Chance Comanche went up for a layup and was hit hard by a pair of Bakersfield defenders. Some shoving occurred with Comanche lying on the court and officials called time out to review the incident on video.Taze Moore was called for a flagrant foul one and Comanche ended the long drought by making one of two free throws with 7:59 left. Arizona got the ball out of bounds on the play and Markkanen sank his only 3 of the night to boost the lead to 57-49.Playing small forward on Arizonas big front line, he drove hard down the lane, was fouled and converted a three-point play with 5:51 left and made a short jumper with 5:17 to go, giving the Wildcats a 64-54 lead and they held on from there.Lauris strong, Miller said. Hes not skinny, hes not thin. Hes 18 years old buy physically he can take a pounding and I think that really shows. He doesnt appear to be 7 foot because hes not a rail-thin 7-footer.His pull-ups that he made tonight, watching him go to the free throw line under pressure, hes a special, special player.Hes also a great team player and a good student.I dont think hes got a B at Arizona, Miller said. And practice-wise hes consumed with becoming a great player. Hes one of our teams hardest workers. ... Im so glad we have him.BIG PICTURECal State Bakersfield: The Roadrunners were not cowed by the atmosphere and look like WAC contenders.Arizona: After the opener against a big name school, the young Wildcats fell into a lull with a big lead. That might not have happened if Allen had been available.PLAYER SHORTAGEThe absence of Allen left Arizona with only seven scholarship players with a particular shortage at guard. It got even worse when Jackson-Cartwright got into foul trouble.UP NEXTCal State Bakersfield: returns home to face UC Santa Barbara Saturday night.Arizona: Plays the second of three straight home nonconference game against teams from lesser conferences, facing Sacred Heart on Friday night. Benny Snell Jr. Jersey . The 18-year-old American had five birdies in her bogey-free round for a 17-under total of 196. Lee held the overnight lead but mixed three birdies with two bogeys for a 70. Casey Sayles Jersey . Q: Team Canada announces their Olympic roster three weeks from today. Who is general manager Steve Yzerman watching? LeBrun: Over the last 48 hours, hes taken in the home-and-home between the Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche with Jamie Benn and Matt Duchene being the obvious targets. http://www.cheapsteelersjerseysauthentic.com/?tag=authentic-malik-williams-jersey . Ivanovic was leading 7-5, 1-0 when Hantuchova withdrew after falling 0-40 behind in the second game. The match started slowly for Ivanovic, who surrendered her first two serves as Hantuchova took a 5-3 lead. John Stallworth Jersey . Denis Coderre, the former federal MP who was elected mayor on Nov. 3, has drawn the ire of some Montreal Canadiens. During last nights game he tweeted: "Hello? Can we get a one-way ticket to (minor-league) Hamilton for David Desharnais please. Ramon Foster Jersey . - Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco is not a fan of his teams use of the wildcat formation, saying "it makes you look like a high school offence. Leicester City overcame 5,000-1 odds to win the English Premier League, so surely lovable long shot and noted horrendous golfer Charles Barkley has a chance at this weeks American Century Championship celebrity tournament at Lake Tahoe, Nevada -- a 1 in 6,000 chance.Barkley is 6,000-1 to win the tournament, which tees off Friday at Edgewood Golf Course. Hes by far the biggest long shot in the field, with slightly worse odds than Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles and comedian Larry the Cable Guy, who are each 3,000-1.Barkley finished 90th out of 91 golfers at last years tournament, besting model Kim Alexis by two points and coming up just 178 points shy of champion Mark Mulder, the former major league pitcher.Barkley has finished last five times in his 20 appearances in the tournament. But a few risky folks believe this is his year, or, more likely, simply want a souvenir betting ticket on the NBA Hall of Famer. As of Thursday afternoon, 10 bets had been placed on Barkley to win the tournament at the sportsbook at Harveys casino in Lake Tahoe, Nevada.I think they use them to get auutographs, Harveys sportsbook manager Dave Cudney said of the bets on Barkley.ddddddddddddCudney has been setting the odds for the celebrity tournament since the mid-1990s. He says the largest bets on the tournament have been in the $10,000 range, but most are small bets, especially the ones on Barkley, who didnt exactly ooze confidence about his game in a June press conference promoting the tournament.I would love to play great golf, but I think its probably not going to happen for me, man, Barkley said. But Im a little too old to be trying to take sports serious -- Im out there to relax and have a good time.Mulder and professional tennis player Mardy Fish are co-favorites at 3-1. Golden State point guard Stephen Curry (6-1) has attracted by far and away the most bets, Cudney said. Former MLB pitcher Eric Gagne (5-1) has attracted the most money as of Thursday.Currys teammate And