a sack specialist — Dumervil uses that to his advantage.As I watch

DURHAM, N.C. -- Jabari Parker had 21 points and 10 rebounds, and No. 6 Duke beat UNC Asheville 91-55 on Monday night in the opening round of the NIT Season Tip-Off. Rodney Hood had 15 of his 18 points in the first half for the Blue Devils (3-1), who never trailed and shot 57 per cent. Duke held a 42-28 rebounding advantage, built a 20-point first-half lead and coasted to its 104th straight nonconference win at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Sam Hughes scored 16 points for the Bulldogs (1-3). They shot 33 per cent and never got closer than 18 points in the second half. UNC Asheville was beaten soundly by its second top-10 opponent in 11 days after being routed 89-57 by then-No. 1 Kentucky. Andre Dawkins had 13 points and Quinn Cook and freshman Semi Ojeleye added 10 apiece to help Duke improve to 23-2 in the preseason NIT. The Blue Devils have won the tournament four times and two of those titles came during their most recent national championship seasons in 2000-01 and 2009-10. And once again, Hood and Parker did most of the heavy lifting for Dukes offence. In all four games, the Blue Devils have been led in scoring by either Hood or Parker. Hood was coming off a career-high 28-point performance last time out against Florida Atlantic. Also in that game, Parker became the first Duke freshman under coach Mike Krzyzewski with at least 20 points in each of the first three games of his career. Parker wasted little time making it four in a row, scoring 14 in the first half while finishing 8 of 13 from the field. And Hood turned in several highlight-reel plays during his 6-for-8 night: His personal 7-0 run gave Duke its first 20-point lead. Hoods jumper after a pretty behind-the-back dribble came two possessions before a posterizing dunk, and a 3-pointer from the corner made it 44-24 with just under 4 minutes before halftime. Perhaps lost in the shuffle, high-energy forward Amile Jefferson did the dirty work that led to the run by Hood that put this one out of reach. On three consecutive defensive series, Jefferson got a hand in the face of 7-footer Jaleel Roberts during a jumper, grabbed a key rebound and forced the steal from Hughes that set up Hoods 3. Just as in the Blue Devils previous two home games, they built such a big early lead that the drama-free second half afforded plenty of chances to show off. And no sequence was prettier than Parkers reverse dunk of Cooks open-court alley-oop feed with 12 1/2 minutes left. David Robertson added 12 points for UNC Asheville, which made just its second visit to Cameron and first since 2008. The Bulldogs once again were without forward Will Weeks, who averages 13 points but missed his second straight game with a knee injury. Nike Shoes Clearance Sale . Will Venable and Ryan Ludwick drove in a run each for the Padres, who have taken six of their last seven contests and clinched their third straight series win after winning the first two in this set. Clayton Richard (4-9) allowed five hits and a pair of runs over seven innings, while fanning five. Nike Shoes Ireland Sale . The 55th-ranked Istomin saved 11 of 14 break points to win in just over two hours, setting up a second round meeting with Australian Marinko Matosevic. It was the Uzbeks third win in three matches against fifth-seeded Kohlschreiber, the 2007 and 2012 tournament winner. http://www.cheapnikeshoesireland.com/ .J. - Several people have collapsed in an overcrowded New Jersey train station while waiting in long lines to get to the Super Bowl. Wholesale Nike Shoes For Sale . Next up is another showdown with Michigan. Payne scored 18 points, Branden Dawson had 14 and No. 22 Michigan State beat No. 12 Wisconsin 83-75 on Saturday to reach the Big Ten tournament championship. Nike Sale Ireland . Not bad for a defenceman. The goal, that is. Although the shuffling dance steps werent bad, either. Barrie scored 55 seconds into overtime, Semyon Varlamov stopped 29 shots, and the Avalanche moved a step closer to their first playoff berth in four years with a 3-2 win over the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday night.OWINGS MILLS, Md. - Having already placed his name in the Baltimore Ravens record book, Elvis Dumervil has turned his attention toward getting the team into the post-season.With 3 1/2 sacks against Miami last Sunday, Dumervil broke the team single-season record of 15 set by Peter Boulware in 2001. Dumervil now has 16 sacks, one short of his career high and tied for the NFL lead with Justin Houston of Kansas City.The lofty total can be attributed to a rigorous off-season training regimen, hard work and good health.Its like the stars are aligning, but the most special thing that could happen is we get into the playoffs, Dumervil said Wednesday. The records been broken. I havent really dwelled on it too much or soaked it in. Weve still got three critical games left. More than anything, to have that record at the end of the year and make a deep run in the playoffs, thats the goal.Baltimore (8-5) hosts Jacksonville (2-11) on Sunday. The Ravens trail Cincinnati by a half-game in the AFC North and are right in the middle of the crowded wild-card hunt.Dumervil came to the Ravens as a free agent in March 2013 following a now infamous snafu by his agent, who failed to fax paperwork to the league office in timely fashion. That ended Dumervils seven-year run in Denver, where he earned three Pro Bowl invites and was an Associated Press first-team All-Pro in 2009.In his first season with Baltimore, he had 9 1/2 sacks, 31 tackles and two forced fumbles — decent enough numbers, but not up to his standards. Not only that, but the Ravens missed the playoffs for the first time in six years.After finally adjusting to a new defensive scheme, Dumervil sustained a high ankle sprain late in the 2013 season. He missed a game against Minnesota in December and had only one sack over the final seven weeks.During the off-season he put a priority on working hard enough to get in good shape without puttting undue stress on his 30-year-old body.ddddddddddddecovering better, eating better and really working smart. Those things played an intricate part in this whole process, Dumervil said.At training camp, he went up against second-year right tackle Rick Wagner on a daily basis. The duel made both of them better.He made me sharpen my talents, Dumervil said.I definitely knew this summer he was going to have an awesome year, Wagner said. Sometimes its just impossible to block him. Its good to see him beating some of the other tackles in the league instead of me all the time.Although hes only 5-foot-11, 255 pounds — considerably smaller than the typical size of a sack specialist — Dumervil uses that to his advantage.As I watch him rush the passer, I see where its a benefit to him, Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. And then hes got ridiculously long arms and a very powerful lower body. He can go underneath the block and tilt the offensive tackles balance.Said Hurst: He gets a good jump off the ball. Hes a lot smaller than most guys but he has the same amount of power as a big guy. He can get under your pads and push you back. Hes really tough to get leverage on.Dumervil chose to come to Baltimore last year primarily because the team has long been known for its defence and usually finds its way into the playoffs. He now stands alone atop a list that includes some of the teams greatest players: Boulware, Terrell Suggs, Ray Lewis, Michael McCrary and Trevor Pryce.I had the franchise record in Denver (17 in 2009) before a good friend of mine, I call him my little brother, Von Miller, broke it (in 2012), Dumervil noted. Ive been in this situation before, and this time around Im more grateful because this organization has a proud defence. To own a prestigious record like that, its huge, man. Its humbling.___AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFL ' ' '