r world junior game So what will McDavid remember

NEW YORK -- DeAndre Daniels UConn teammates were going to keep passing him the ball until he cooled off. By the time that happened, it was too late for Iowa State. Daniels scored 19 of his 27 points in the second half, and the Huskies hung on for an 81-76 victory Friday to reach the East Regional final a year after UConn was barred from the NCAA tournament. "DeAndres a scorer, and once you feel that you have that confidence, the next shots going to go in," said senior Shabazz Napier, who knows a thing or two about scoring himself. "We kept feeding him, and he got super hot." Daniels hit his first six shots after halftime, the only Husky to make a field goal for over 8 1/2 minutes. His 3-pointer gave seventh-seeded UConn a 49-32 lead. The third-seeded Cyclones rallied late, pulling within 67-63 with 2 1/2 minutes remaining. But senior Niels Giffey hit a 3 in the corner for his first points since the games opening moments, and when the Huskies (29-8) made their free throws in the final minute, the UConn fans packing Madison Square Garden could celebrate. The Huskies will face fourth-seeded Michigan State on Sunday for a trip to the Final Four after the Spartans beat top-seeded Virginia 61-59 in the late game. Dustin Hogue scored a career-high 34 points for Iowa State (28-8), but Big 12 player of the year Melvin Ejim was 3 of 13 for seven points, more than 11 below his average. The Cyclones, in the Sweet Sixteen for the first time since 2000, were playing their second game without third-leading scorer Georges Niang, who broke his foot in their tournament opener. They trailed by 16 with less than 7 1/2 minutes to go but nearly came all the way back behind Hogues scoring inside. "Thats who these guys are, theyre fighters," coach Fred Hoiberg said. With UConn clinging to a 70-65 lead and less than a minute left, Iowa States Naz Long missed a 3-pointer, and the 6-1 Napier pulled down the rebound and was fouled by Hogue. The guard calmly drilled both free throws. UConn was 20 of 22 from the foul line, while Iowa State was 6 of 15. Napier, the American Athletic Conference player of the year, drained four early 3-pointers, then made only one more field goal the rest of the way. But the quick start by Napier and backcourt mate Ryan Boatright opened up space for the 6-foot-9 Daniels, an inconsistent junior who can score all over the court when hes on. Since a stretch in late February and early March when he failed to reach double figures in four straight games, Daniels had averaged 15 in his last six outings before Friday. Then against Iowa State, he shot 10 of 15 and pulled down 10 rebounds. "With our seniors on this team, I just want them to go out with a bang," Daniels said. Ejim and DeAndre Kane, Iowa States top scorers, were a combined 9 of 31. But Hogue, from nearby Yonkers, found plenty of space, shooting 15 for 19. "To play in the Garden, its something I dreamed about as a kid," he said. After Napiers difficult early 3-pointers -- he was falling away on two of them and stepping back to open a sliver of space on a third -- Boatright and Daniels took over. The three combined for all but six of the Huskies points as they built a 36-26 halftime lead. Second-year coach Kevin Ollie is now 3-0 in the NCAA tournament after taking over for mentor Jim Calhoun, who gave him a big hug after this one was over. The last time UConn made it this far, the Huskies won a national title when Napier and Giffey were freshmen. The current upperclassmen could have transferred after the programs low scores on the NCAAs academic progress measure kept UConn from last years Big East and NCAA tournaments. "We were banned from a lot of things," Ollie said. "We couldnt come here for the tournament, but they werent banned from loving and pushing and encouraging each other, and thats what its all about. Those dark times, if you dont give up in the dark times, it will reverse, the wind will start going in your favour, your direction. "And I think thats whats happened now." Cheap Giants Jerseys . -- What Anthony Jennings lacked in experience, LSU more than compensated for with a talented supporting cast in the Outback Bowl. Wholesale Giants Jerseys .Y. -- The Buffalo Bills will head into the regular season short on experience at quarterback after trimming the roster on Friday. https://www.cheapjerseysgiants.us/. 15-23, the Ottawa Senators will by hoping to avoid going five straight games without a victory for the first time since a 0-3-2 drought from Oct. Fake Giants Jerseys .com) - Former foes from the Mountain West Conference battle in the 23rd annual Las Vegas Bowl, as the 23rd-ranked Utah Utes clash with the Colorado State Rams at Sam Boyd Stadium on Saturday. Giants Jerseys 2020 . - Connor Brown and Dane Fox both scored in regulation and in the shootout, as the Erie Otters extended their win streak to 10 games by defeating the London Knights 4-3 on Saturday in Ontario Hockey League action.MALMO, SWEDEN – Santa Claus paid a visit to Team Canadas Christmas Eve dinner on Tuesday evening at Örenäs Castle, about a 40-minute drive outside Malmo where this years World Junior Hockey Championship is being held. And the big guy in red came armed with gifts and scouting reports. He called up the players one at a time and offered a quick hockey-related message. "That was quite the shot you had last game," Santa bellowed when Connor McDavid was on his lap, "Shoot, shoot, shoot." WATCH: Behind the scenes at Team Canadas Christmas Eve dinner And the 16-year-old listened, putting the puck on net four times against Germany on Monday, matching Anthony Mantha and Bo Horvat for the team lead in the tournament opener, but came away empty-handed. McDavid did notch two assists in his world junior debut, but that first goal is proving elusive. "I missed a whole bunch of chances that Im pretty embarrassed about, but I thought I played an alright game," he said. WATCH: Bob McKenzie breaks down McDavids performance against Germany If theres one criticism McDavid has faced recently its that he sometimes passes up his own scoring chance to set up an even better one with a higher degree of difficulty for a teammate. Its something hes well aware of. "I know one of the big criticisms from other people is that I dont shoot the puck enough and Im always looking for the fancy play and the pass so I try and listen to that and I do try and shoot the puck as much as I can," McDavid said. "I just try and make the right play." McDavid, more often than not, makes the right play. For example, he found his way behind the Swiss defence on Monday and scored on a breakaway in Canadas final pre-tournament game. That was the goal Santa was talking about. "He sees the ice so well," said head coach Brent Sutter. "You look at that goal he got. After he scored, the guys were all looking at each other on the bench and asking, Where did he come from? He just knows how to play the game. Hes smart, intelligent and hes got great sense for the game, tremendous hockey sense and hes got the skill-set to go with it." "There was just a quick turnover," McDavid recalled, "and I saw Mantha had the puck there and everyone kind of jumped forward on their team so I just kind of took a step to the offensive side, which I shouldnt be doing too much, but it worked out, I guess." That hockey sense, that ability to know what moment to strike, thats a key reason why McDavid is seen as the slam-dunk choice to go first overall in the 2015 NHL draft. And thats why any critique of his game at this moment in time – when hes just become the sixth 16-year-old to ever make the Canadian world junior team – seems ridiculously nitpicky. "Its probably nitpicky for sure," agreed Sam Reinhart, when asked if his linemate needs to shoot more. "Hes a great player. How does he have so manny goals if he doesnt shoot? Thats my question.dddddddddddd." When he left for Canadas selection camp, McDavid was eighth in Ontario Hockey League scoring and third on the Erie Otters with 12 goals and 50 points in 31 games. He helped Canada win gold at the 2013 World Under-18 Championship, leading all scorers with eight goals and 14 points in just seven games. Reinhart and McDavid also played together at the under-18 level and formed instant chemistry. That chemistry has carried over to the under-20 level, even though McDavid has been shifted to left wing. Horvat has played between the two "youngsters" and its the one trio Sutter refused to tinker with when he juggled every other line coming off a disappointing loss to the Swedes in pre-tournament play Sunday. "Theyve probably been our most consistent line since Day 1 so thats why I wanted to keep them together," the coach explained. "Its nice," said Reinhart. "We felt like we were playing well together. Its nice when he has that confidence to keep putting us out there together." It was also a sign of just how important that line and McDavid in particular will be to the teams success. Goals may be hard to come by later in the tournament and McDavid, who also gets time on the power play, will be expected to shoulder a big part of the load. Although he doesnt see it that way. "No, I dont feel that pressure," he argued. "We have 13 unbelievably gifted forwards here that can score at any time. If its my line or any other line, it really doesnt matter to me. I dont think offence is something that we need to worry about." Sometimes its easy to forget the phenom is just 16 years-old. He was taking his driving test on the day the Canadian selection camp roster was announced. And yet his maturity suggests his mental game is just as advanced as his physical gifts. The Newmarket, Ontario native is grateful for the opportunity, but not overcome by the moment. On Thursday, he officially joined Wayne Gretzky, Eric Lindros, Jason Spezza, Jay Boumeester and Sidney Crosby as 16-year-olds to wear the Maple Leaf at the world juniors. "Its pretty special. Just to be named in the same breath as those guys is something to be pretty proud of," he said. "It was a dream come true. Its pretty special to be here, but now that were here, we know what we want to do and well take it day by day." WATCH: McDavid talks to Nabil Karim about his first ever world junior game So what will McDavid remember about his first world junior game? "Probably just the Canadian fans who made the trip. I was not expecting that at all. It was unbelievable to see. "I noticed them right away, I got chills skating out for the first little bit." Any nerves considering the stage? "Yeah, I was a little nervous," McDavid admits. "Any time you wear the Canadian jersey, there are nerves that come along with that." ' ' '