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FRISCO, Texas - A late penalty-kick goal created by a controversial handball call brought the Vancouver Whitecaps season to a frustrating end.Midfielder Michel stutter-stepped and slid his unmolested shot into the left side of the net in the 84th minute as Vancouver goalkeeper David Ousted dived in the other direction to give FC Dallas a 2-1 victory in the knockout round of Major League Soccers Western Conference playoffs Wednesday night.Dallas (17-12-6) will face Seattle in the two-game conference semifinal.The loss ended the Whitecaps five-game unbeaten streak and closed out a season in which Vancouver (12-9-14) advanced to the post-season for the second time in its MLS history. The club has now lost all six of its games at FC Dallass Toyota Stadium.This one just hurt more than the others.It was a big decision given the magnitude of the game, defender Andy OBrien said. But these are things that happen.The game kicks you between the legs sometimes, and thats how it feels tonight.The most painful kick came from referee Mark Geiger, who awarded a penalty when a bouncing ball in the Vancouver box barely glanced off the right arm of Kendall Waston as the Whitecaps defender tried to put his hands behind his back. The Vancouver players protested vehemently, but the call stood.Waston deliberately handled the ball, hence the PK was called, Geiger said.Waston disagreed with the deliberate part.I tried to put my hand on the back of my body and the ball hit me, he said. Thats different than putting your hand on the ball. But that was the decision of the referee. I respect it, but I dont approve it.The Whitecaps had extended their shutout streak to 432 minutes — surpassing a run of 427 minutes in 2012 as the longest in club history — before watching that streak disappear in the 40th minute thanks to FC Dallass surprise starter.Midfielder Mauro Diaz, making his first start since Aug. 9 and only his 10th in an injury-plagued season, turned a sliver of space into a dangerous run, slipping past OBrien and Waston near midfield to break into the clear.When defender Jordan Harvey came out to challenge Diaz, he slid a deft pass to Calgary-born Tesho Akindele, who fired a low shot just inside the far post for a 1-0 lead.I tried to stick my butt out into the guy (Diaz), and I thought Kendall was going to come and clean out, OBrien said. But he nicked past him and then he was gone.Down and seemingly out — FC Dallas had dominated possession and scoring chances in the first half — the Whitecaps rose to tie the match with a stunning goal in the 64th minute, the climax of an inspired second-half effort.The play began with a floating free kick into the Dallas box by Mauro Rosales that pinballed around before popping out to second-half substitute Kekuta Manneh. Mannehs shot was blocked, but the ball fell at the feet of Erik Hurtado, and the Whitecaps forward slammed it past keeper Chris Seitz on the right side to give his team life.Then it slipped away, to the sound of a whistle.I questioned my team at halftime because I thought we played with a little bit of fear, Whitecaps coach Carl Robinson said. The second half was the total opposite. My team gave me everything I asked and more. The performance they put in in the second half was not worthy of losing this game.Weve got Mauro Rosales in there, whos 33 years of age and whos been very successful, and hes crying his eyes out in there because he feels the result wasnt what we deserved. And I agree with him. Cheap NFL Jerseys China .The Los Angeles Lakers star passed Michael Jordan for third on the NBAs career scoring list Sunday night in a 100-94 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves. Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys . With the final four being arguably the four best – and most complete – teams from the regular season, picking a winner is not as easy as it sounds. https://www.cheapnfljerseysjustwholesale.com/. In question is whether 26-year-old Matt Frattin will be on it. A a€?mediocrea€? training camp, as Carlyle put it earlier this week, has Frattin lingering nervously on the bubble at the end of the exhibition season, pushed out of a likely job by Brandon Kozun, the small, but feisty winger determined to make the NHL for the first time. Cheap NHL Jerseys . Lisicki beat South African Chanelle Scheepers by a 7-5, 7-6 (7-1) margin. Next up for the Wimbledon runner-up will be Slovenian Polona Hercog, who outlasted Czech Petra Cetkovska 6-4, 5-7, 6-1. Authentic NFL Jerseys . - The Baltimore Ravens and tight end Dennis Pitta reached agreement on a five-year contract Friday.OAKLAND, Calif. -- One game. After a season featuring more losses than wins, thats all that separates the New York Knicks and the final post-season spot in the weak Eastern Conference standings. J.R. Smith scored 21 points, Carmelo Anthony added 19 points and nine rebounds and the Knicks moved closer to a playoff seed by beating the undermanned Golden State Warriors 89-84 on Sunday night. "We cant worry about Cleveland, Atlanta, Charlotte -- none of them guys. We control our own thing," Anthony said. "If we play like tonight and just play hard and really lock in and focus on what we have to focus on, I think well be all right." The Knicks outscored Golden State 34-12 in the second quarter to go ahead 56-44 at the half, and then held off a furious rally by Stephen Curry and the Warriors in the closing minutes. Curry scored 32 points, including a tying 3-pointer with 2:42 remaining. But he missed his last two shots from long range and also had a pass stolen on Golden States final possession. New York (31-43) is a game behind fast-fading Atlanta, which has lost six straight, for the final playoff seed. And the Knicks can credit their defence for the latest victory, holding the streaky Warriors to 35.4 per cent shooting. "Our defence finally stepped up," Knicks coach Mike Woodson said. With big men Andrew Bogut and David Lee sidelined with injuries, Curry tried to keep the Warriors close. Curry connected on consecutive 3-pointers to slice New Yorks lead to 74-72 early in the fourth quarter, riling up the announced sellout crowd of 19,596 for the finishing stretch. After the Knicks went ahead 81-75, Curry & Co. roared back again. The All-Star point guard capped a 6-0 spurt with a corner 3-pointer, dancing in place after tying the score with 2:42 to play. Curry missed from long range his next time down, chasing the rebound but then forcing an errant shot while trying to draw a foul. Jermaine ONeal fouled Amare Stoudemire, who made a pair of throws to put the Knicks in front. New York forced Andre Iguodala into a miss before Anthonys pull-up jumper. Klay Thompson came back with a 3-pointer to bring the Warriors within one. Anthony hit two free throws to put the Knicks up 87-84 with 45.4 seconds left. Currys 3-point attempt over Anthony rimmed in-and-out, the Knicks grabbed the rebound but weree called for a shot-clock violation.dddddddddddd Raymond Felton closed out fast on the final possession against Curry, who double-clutched and tried to pass in the air -- only to have Shannon Brown steal the ball, make two free throws and seal a big victory for the Knicks. "If I could do it over, I probably wouldve just tried to find a way to just shoot it regardless," said Curry, who shot 10-of-21 from the floor, including 6-of-12 from 3-point range. Warriors coach Mark Jacksons team is suddenly looking like a tired and banged-up bunch at the most pivotal point of the season. Thompson finished with 15 points and nine rebounds, and Iguodala added 12 points and five rebounds for the Warriors (45-28), who are in sixth place in the tight Western Conference race. Golden State is two games behind fifth-place Portland, but only two games ahead of ninth-place Dallas -- and being out of the playoff picture entirely. Home losses to teams with losing records are piling up as fast as injuries. Bogut (bruised groin/pelvic) also is expected to miss Tuesdays game at Dallas and Wednesdays game at San Antonio -- and possibly more. The Warriors are hopeful Lee (strained right hamstring) could return during the trip after missing his second consecutive game, though the injury has kept him from even practicing lately. "We are developing and we certainly own the fact that we have lost some games that we shouldve won," Jackson said. "When you look on that floor that is a more than capable New York team that has underachieved this year, but they have talent." The game still started Golden States way. Thompson and Curry each made two 3-pointers to help the Warriors go ahead by 12 points in the opening minutes. But the Knicks outscored Golden State 34-12 in the second quarter, including a 15-0 run with Anthony on the bench to go up 56-44 at the half. It tied Golden States lowest-scoring quarter of the season. Hardaway finished with 15 points and Stoudemire had 15 points and 13 rebounds for the Knicks, who are 2-2 on their five-game road trip, which ends Monday at Utah. NOTES: The teams split the season series 1-1. ... New York hasnt won a season series over Golden State since 2000-01. ... Warriors co-owner Joe Lacob sat in a courtside seat next to rapper and Oakland native MC Hammer, who was celebrating his 52nd birthday. ' ' '
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