the competition Tuesday night against No. 12 Michigan State at the Champions Classic in New York.BAMS BOUNCE-BACKAdebayo had plenty of room to grow from a five-point, one-rebound debut limit

HOOVER, Ala. -- Defensive end Jonathan Allen cant imagine why any team wouldnt embrace Alabamas annual national title expectations.Its certainly always on the to-do list these days for the Crimson Tide and an insatiable fan base, no matter how many stars have gone to the NFL or how much uncertainty revolves around the quarterback position.Obviously every team in college going into the year wants to win a national championship, Allen said. Thats the goal. If youre not trying to win it, I dont know why youre here. But you dont focus on that. Youve got to focus on what youve got to do to get there.If that ultimate goal is considered unachievable for most teams, even in July, its become the perceived dividing line at `Bama between a successful season and a disappointing one.And Southeastern Conference media days is when coach Nick Saban takes the podium each July and notes that its hard to really tell before the season how a team will develop and gel. Plus, the quarterback competition could well carry over into the season for a third straight year.A year ago I didnt know that we were going to have that kind of team chemistry when I stood up here and talked to you, Saban told a ballroom full of reporters Wednesday. I didnt know we would have that kind of commitment. I didnt know we would respond to adversity the way we did.And even though were trying to work on creating those things with the personality of this team, we dont know that for sure either.The Tide, which won a 45-40 shootout with Clemson in the national title game, couldnt escape the offseason without off-the-field issues that could have potentially damaged those title hopes.Left tackle Cam Robinson and reserve defensive back Hootie Jones were arrested on drug and weapon charges in Monroe, Louisiana, in May. The district attorney elected not to pursue the case, which included felony charges against Robinson involving possession of a stolen firearm.Saban said both players have done community service speaking with youth and participated in police ride-alongs, and indicated that they can expect further punishment including missed playing time.That still leaves the challenges of replacing Heisman Trophy tailback Derrick Henry, quarterback Jake Coker and standouts like linebacker Reggie Ragland and center Ryan Kelly.Thats an annual issue for a program that has produced 17 NFL first-round picks over the last seven years. During that span the Tide has won four national titles while going 62-7 over the last five seasons.One difference this time is there isnt an experienced tailback to replace Derrick Henry and Kenyan Drake in a suddenly thin backfield. Sophomores Bo Scarbrough and Damien Harris were both five-star recruits who had limited opportunities last season.The Tide had the motivation going into 2015 of a playoff semifinal defeat to Ohio State, when the offense made mistakes and the defense was uncharacteristically pushed around.Now, the incentive is to win back to back titles for the second time under Saban, whos entering his 10th season at Alabama. Allen said he still sees a hungry team, and that Saban wouldnt hesitate to bench a player who doesnt come in with the right intensity level.I think our team knows thats last year, tight end O.J. Howard said. This team hasnt done anything yet. Were a new team. We have to establish ourselves.Everyone is working hard and no one is complacent. New players have bought into `The Process already. The older guys are doing the right things. I think well be fine this season. Cheap Willie McCovey Jersey . But Bourque, who has missed three games with a lower-body injury, wont be in the lineup when the Habs travel to Buffalo to take on the Sabres on Wednesday. Wholesale Giants Jerseys . -- Ohio States Urban Meyer has never had any issue acclimating to the biggest stages in college football. http://www.cheapsanfranciscogiantsjerseys.com/?tag=cheap-mel-ott-jersey . Both players have lower body injuries that will keep them out of the lineup until at least January 31, which is the first game they can be activated from IR. Cheap Giants Jerseys . Most important, perhaps, it went off without a hitch. Organizers poked a little fun at the now-infamous opening ceremony gaffe that saw only four out of five snowflakes open up into rings, leaving the Olympics logo one ring short. Cheap Deion Sanders Jersey . -- Yogi Ferrell orchestrates pretty much everything in Indianas offence. LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Isaiah Briscoe expected all those NBA workouts focused on improving his game to pay off with efforts like this.Judging from how newcomer DeAaron Fox shook off a rough start, Briscoe picked up some leadership pointers as well.Briscoe and Fox each scored a career-high 21 points, Malik Monk added 16 and No. 2 Kentucky pulled away from Canisius early in the second half for a 93-69 victory Sunday night.Briscoe topped his previous high of 20 last December at UCLA behind 9-of-13 shooting that helped Kentucky (2-0) rally from a seven-point first half deficit to build a 44-35 halftime advantage.I was just doing whatever I needed to do to keep my team in the game, said Briscoe, who attended those camps before returning for his sophomore season. We came out sluggish, we werent hitting shots, so I had to keep us in the game.Freshmen and fellow guards Fox and Monk combined to shoot 11 of 24 en route to career scoring bests in their short careers, while 6-foot-10 newcomer Bam Adebayo had 14 points and 11 rebounds a game after a foul-plagued debut Friday night.Those contributions came only after the Wildcats endured some early struggles. A 9-2 deficit forced Kentucky coach John Calipari to call timeout and calm his team down.When youre playing so many young guys, sometimes you just have to settle them down, he said.Briscoe spoke up as well, and the Wildcats responded with steady play that spoke volumes.Weve had to face that adversity since weve been here, Fox said, but hes done that in a few games last year. We all just listened to what he was saying.Kentucky shot 51 percent from the field.Kassius Robertson had 16 points, Jermaine Crumpton 13 and Phil Valenti 12 for Canisius (0-1) in the coaching debut of Reggie Witherspoon. The Golden Griffins initially pushed the pace and had Kentucky reacting but had no long-term answer for the Wildcats pace and backcourt.THE BIG PICTURECanisius: Solid shooting initially helped the Golden Griffins, whoo made 46 percent in the first half and played Kentucky nearly even on the boards (39-36).dddddddddddd But they committed 18 turnovers leading to 29 Kentucky points and cooled off to 37 percent shooting after the break and finished 42 percent overall.I thought it was a fast-paced game, probably a little faster than our depth handled tonight, Witherspoon said. We were able to move the ball and get some good looks, but a team like this (Kentucky) recovers quickly and sometimes a good look can still be difficult. We had pockets where we played well, but werent able to sustain it.Kentucky: The Wildcats also shot a respectable 46 percent in the first half behind Briscoes 7-of-8 performance and had some nice ball movement between the guards down the stretch. They were less generous with the ball compared to the opener, finishing with just 10 assists on 31 baskets.POLL IMPLICATIONSNext week might provide a definitive answer as Kentucky steps up the competition Tuesday night against No. 12 Michigan State at the Champions Classic in New York.BAMS BOUNCE-BACKAdebayo had plenty of room to grow from a five-point, one-rebound debut limited to just 15 minutes by four fouls. The freshman committed just two fouls against Canisius and earned initial career bests with points, rebounds and 27 minutes.I just wasnt as focused as much as I should have, and tonight I just started focusing, he said.UP NEXTCanisius: Visits Cleveland State on Tuesday night in the second game of the Bluegrass Showcase, an event that also features Duquesne, Cleveland State and UT Martin playing games at campus sites.Kentucky: Faces Michigan State on Tuesday in New York. The schools last met in the same event two years ago in Chicago, a 78-74 Spartans victory that brought them within 12-11 in the series.---More AP College Basketball: collegebasketball.ap.org ' ' '