said the team learned from it. That was probably the best thing for us, Ahmed Gilder said, We had a great practice after that loss.TURNING POINTAfter making just 1 of 10 shots from

SAN DIEGO -- Hoisting the trophy and spraying champagne will be nice, for sure, for the crew that wins the Americas Cup World Series. Hurricanes Jerseys 2021 .Even sweeter will be the two bonus points that can help jumpstart that team when the fleet reconvenes in Bermuda next summer for the elimination rounds.The ninth and final stop of the ACWS will be sailed this weekend in Fukuoka, Japan. The winner of the overall series will earn two bonus points to carry into the qualifiers in June, while the second-place team will earn one bonus point.Thats a significant bonus to take forward, said British sailing star Sir Ben Ainslie, whose Land Rover BAR team holds the overall series lead with 437 points, 14 better than two-time defending Americas Cup champion Oracle Team USA.Emirates Team New Zealand, the hard-luck loser to Oracle in the 2013 Americas Cup, is three points back in third, with 420.SoftBank Team Japan is fourth with 399, followed by Artemis Racing of Sweden with 391 and Groupama Team France with 360.Ainslie, who was knighted a few months after winning his fourth straight Olympic gold medal at the 2012 London Games, said Land Rover BAR has been motivated by the bonus points and because its a new team fighting for the oldest trophy in international sports.Its been a huge amount of work, Ainslie said. Ive never worked this hard in my life. Its been massively rewarding for all of us for what weve achieved in a short amount of time. But were just starting. Our goal is to build a sustainable business in the UK with the core goal of winning the Americas Cup. We know it will be a huge battle next summer in Bermuda. If were not able to win the Cup next time, were going to keep going. We set this up to keep going until we get the job done.Ainslie would love to become the first Englishman to hoist the Americas Cup in victory. After losing the trophy to the schooner America in 1851, the Brits have never been able to win it back.Its huge, Ainslie said. For us, we have a very proud sporting heritage. Thats the one sporting trophy weve never won.The two bonus points will essentially represent two wins in the double round-robin qualifiers. In a break with tradition, the defender, Oracle, will sail against the challengers in that series.If a challenger wins the qualifiers and ultimately advances to the Americas Cup match, it will begin with a one-point advantage. Likewise, if Oracle, owned by software billionaire Larry Ellison, wins the qualifiers, it will begin the first-to-seven match with a one-point lead.After the qualifiers, the top four challengers will advance to the playoffs consisting of semifinals and finals to determine which team faces Oracle in the Americas Cup match.Ainslie said that one-point bonus for the Americas Cup match would be a nice helping hand.It certainly is our approach that its definitely worth fighting for, he said.Land Rover BAR has won three of the eight ACWS stops, with one second and two thirds.Oracle has yet to win a stop on the series, although it has four second-place finishes and two thirds.However, Oracle was last in the previous ACWS stop in Toulon, France.Skipper Jimmy Spithill missed that regatta after having elbow surgery. Hes back for this regatta.Obviously this would be a pretty nice one to crack that, Spithill said. But the biggest thing in this series was consistency. Trust me, every single event we come to as a team, the goal is the same, to try to come away with a win. This one is no different. We want to come away with points. Were in not too bad of a position.Ainslie sailed with Oracle in the 2013 Americas Cup, helping the American-backed team rally to beat Team New Zealand in one of the biggest comebacks in sports history.I would say if they went through without winning an event that would be a disappointment in terms of their psyche, although it doesnt really hurt them, Ainslie said. Knowing that team, they expect to be performing better. Theyve been one of the more consistent teams but they havent been able to nail it on the date. Hopefully, from our point of view, this Japan event wont be when they start.---Follow Bernie Wilson on Twitter at http://twitter.com/berniewilson Stitched Hurricanes Jerseys . Coach Mike Munchak says Fokou stretched ligaments in his left knee Oct. 13 against Seattle, which could keep out up to five weeks even though the linebacker didnt need surgery. Wholesale Hurricanes Jerseys . Ferrer, trying to win his fourth title on Mexican soil, will next play South Africas Kevin Anderson, who eliminated American Sam Querrey,7-6 (2), 6-4. Also Wednesday, Gilles Simon (6) of France beat Donald Young of the United States 6-4, 6-3, Ukraines Alexandr Dolgopolov downed Frenchman Jeremy Chardy 6-3, 6-4 and Croatias Ivo Karlovic defeated Dudi Sela of Israel 7-6 (4), 6-2. https://www.cheaphurricanes.com/ . -- Brandon Jennings made the most of his first game with the Detroit Pistons on Sunday night. FULLERTON, Calif. -- DJ Hogg scored 13 of his 17 points in the second half to lead Texas A&M to a 68-65 win over Virginia Tech in a Wooden Legacy semifinal on Friday.Texas A&M (4-1) will play in the tournament championship while Virginia Tech (4-1) plays in the third-place game. Both games are Sunday in Anaheim.Hogg also grabbed 10 rebounds for his first career double-double, and scored the final five points for the Aggies.Texas A&M coach Bill Kennedy was impressed with his teams defensive performance as it held Virginia Tech to 65 points, 27 points less than it scored a day earlier against New Mexico.I thought the first half was a track meet. The second half was more of a halfcourt game, Kennedy said. That was the biggest key for us. One of our goals was to keep them to 65 points or less.Ahmed Hill had 18 points for Virginia Tech. Justin Robinson missed his first four shots but made his final two attempts of the first half and finished with 14 points.Seven players scored for Virginia Tech in the first half as it ran out to a 38-25 halftime lead. The Aggies made eight consecutive shots to pull to 57-54, and later cut the lead to 63-61 on a layup by Admon Gilder.We just didnt close it out, Virginia Tech coach Buzz Williams said. Their offensive execution and offensive rebounding really hurt us. They missed 35 shots and got 15 of them back. We werent able to finish possessions.BIG PICTUREVirginia Tech will need to work on its defense down the stretch and playing weell with a lead. Hurricanes Jerseys China. The Hokies led by as many as 17 points in the second half but couldnt hang on to the lead.Texas A&M should feel good about rallying from a 13-point halftime deficit. It will have another stiff test with either UCLA or Nebraska in the final, which should help its cause before Southeastern Conference play.HE SAID ITThe Aggies lost to Southern California in College Station on Nov. 18, and Ahmed Gilder said the team learned from it. That was probably the best thing for us, Ahmed Gilder said, We had a great practice after that loss.TURNING POINTAfter making just 1 of 10 shots from 3-point range in the first half, the Aggies found their groove and made 4 of 9 3-pointers in the second half. Texas A&M scored on eight consecutive possessions to pull within three points at 57-54. That stretch got the Aggies back in it, and it was a close game the rest of the way.UP NEXTVirginia Tech will play in the third-place game on Sunday, but that figures to be a difficult test, too, with either Nebraska or UCLA. A lot will be learned about the Hokies in how they move on after their first loss of the season.Texas A&M is a surprise contender for the Wooden Legacy tournament title, but it can go a long way in establishing confidence with another victory on Sunday. The Aggies have played well since losing to Southern California 65-63. ' ' '