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UP outlasts UE in 5 sets

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter

THE University of the Philippines (UP) Lady Fighting Maroons booked a hard-earned win in their University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 80 debut, surviving the University of the East (UE) Lady Warriors in five sets, 25-19, 25-13, 21-25, 16-25 and 15-8, yesterday in opening action in women’s play at the Mall of Asia Arena.

Playing their first game under new coach Godfrey Okumu, the Lady Maroons had to dig deep and stand their ground down the stretch to stave off the Lady Warriors and get their campaign in the just-started volleyball season to a winning start.

The Diliman-based volleybelles raced to an 8-4 count in the first technical knockout of the opening set and pretty much took it from there and never looked back with Isa Molde leading the way.

The second frame took a similar route as the Lady Maroons, gaining confidence early, established an 8-3 separation, extending it further to 16-9 in the second technical knockout en route to claiming a 2-0 lead in the match.

UE though would not go down without a fight as it presented a more spirited challenge in the third set.

The Lady Warriors stood toe-to-toe with their opponents to begin the third frame.

The teams were tied at 11-11 midway before UP racked up two straight points to lead, 13-11.

UE answered back with a 3-0 blast to overtake UP, 14-13.

They went back and forth after and were knotted at 19-all at one point until the Lady Warriors outscored the Lady Maroons the rest of the way to win the set and extend play.

Jolted by its defeat in the third set, UP charged to an 8-5 lead in the first technical knockout and extended it some more to 11-6.

But led by the energy and play of outside hitter Judith Abil and opposite Shaya Adorador, the Lady Warriors rallied back to take the advantage, 16-13, by the second technical knockout.

UE built on the momentum, stretching its lead further to 21-13.

Back-to-back points from Molde and Aly Buitre stopped the bleeding for the Lady Maroons, 21-15.

The Lady Warriors though would not be denied as they moved to send the match to a deciding fifth set.

With the outcome of the game still wide open, the two teams battled hard to start the fifth frame.

Molde and Tots Carlos took charge for UP, helping their team to an 8-3 advantage.

UE scored three consecutive points to narrow the gap, 8-6. UP, however, would answer back with two straight of its own to create further gap anew, 10-6.

It was a hole that proved to be too hard for UE to claw its way out from as the Lady Maroons went for the closeout after.

Carlos led the way for UP with 22 points, 20 off kills, while Molde added 20 points.

Justine Dorog had 11 while Jessma Ramos and Buitre had seven points apiece.

Setter Arielle Estranero, meanwhile, had 40 excellent sets for UP (1-0).

On the part of UE it was Abil who led with 12 points and Mean Mendrez adding 10.

“UE played well. We put pressure on them early but we were not able to sustain it. Good thing we got back to our game, especially on defense, in the fifth set,” Mr. Okumu said after their win.

New England Patriots, Brady eye records vs underdog Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl

MINNEAPOLIS — Tom Brady and the New England Patriots will have a slew of records in their sights today as they aim to defend their Super Bowl crown against a Philadelphia Eagles team chasing a first ever win.

Brady, 40, will become the oldest quarterback in history to win the Lombardi Trophy if he successfully leads the Patriots to a record-equaling sixth title.

A sixth title for Brady would also give him more Super Bowl rings than any other player in history.

Win or lose, Brady will become the oldest non-kicker to play in the showpiece on Sunday, 16 years after guiding the Patriots to his first Super Bowl crown in 2002.

More than 100 million households in the United States are expected to tune in for Brady’s latest tilt with Father Time, ending a tumultuous NFL season rocked by player protests and a feud with President Donald Trump.

Trump triggered a furious backlash across the NFL last September after disparaging mostly African-American players who refused to stand for the national anthem in a protest against social injustices.

Advertisers are expected to steer clear of politically charged TV ads, in contrast to last year, when issues such as immigration and women’s rights were tackled.

Pop star Justin Timberlake, who headlines the halftime show, will also aim to avoid controversy, 14 years after the TV-watching nation were scandalized by Janet Jackson in the “Nipplegate” furore.

A crowd of around 66,500 will huddle under the covered roof of the US Bank Stadium, while Minneapolis shivers in the forecasted sub-zero temperatures.

Temperatures at kick-off, at 5.30 p.m. local time (2330 GMT), are expected to be three degrees Fahrenheit (-16 Celsius) — the coldest Super Bowl in history.

BRADY LOOKS TO FUTURE
Today’s finale comes one year after Brady inspired New England to the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history, when the Patriots overturned a 28-3 third-quarter deficit to beat the Atlanta Falcons, 34-28, in overtime. Since then the veteran quarterback has shown no signs of being on the wane.

On Sunday, he became the oldest recipient of the NFL’s Player of the Year award, the third time he has won the honor. It follows a season in which Brady threw for 4,577 yards and 32 touchdowns with eight interceptions.

Brady, who will be playing in his eighth Super Bowl, has shown no interest in savoring the accolades or reflecting on his place at the very top of the NFL’s pantheon.

“I don’t think much about legacy, I never have,” he told reporters. “My motivation comes from just trying to be the best I can be for this team. What’s happened in the past is great, but it’s not going to win us anything this weekend.”

UNDERDOGS TO BITE?
Lying in wait for Brady and head coach Bill Belichick are an Eagles team who powered into the Super Bowl with a 38-7 rout of the Minnesota Vikings.

The Eagles sealed their place thanks to a dazzling display from quarterback Nick Foles, the backup who was thrust into the starting position after an injury ended Carson Wentz’s season in December.

Foles, 29, was only 16 when Brady was winning his third Super Bowl ring, against the Eagles in 2005.

If there is a gulf in experience between Brady and Foles, a chasm separates Belichick and Eagles counterpart Doug Pederson.

Belichick 65, has won seven Super Bowl rings, two as an assistant with the New York Giants and five as head coach with the Patriots, in a career spanning five decades.

Pederson, 50 and only two years into his first head coaching job, was coaching a high school team in Louisiana when Belichick won his fifth Super Bowl in 2005.

Pederson, however, says the Eagles are embracing the role of underdogs. Some of his players have even taken to wearing latex dog masks during their postseason.

“I’ve been an underdog my whole career, my whole life,” Pederson said. “I think that’s the mentality of our football team. I think that’s the mentality of our city, and I’m OK with that.” — AFP

A throwback to happier times

A RECENT collection by designer Albert Andrada, famous for his pageant evening gowns, highlights the life led by one of Britain’s most memorable figures: HRH The Princess Margaret.

If her parents, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth (the Queen Mother) wouldn’t have created a Princess Margaret, she would have had to be written into life. She serves as a perfect character to represent the dilemmas of the world’s class system after the World Wars.

Born with wealth, position, beauty, sharp wit, and raw, unfocused intelligence, The Princess Margaret missed everything by a heartbeat. An accident of birth made her older sister Elizabeth, the Queen, a living representation of all that was sacred about Britain. Her status as a younger sister gave her privilege without power and a duty to merely to look good. In the 1950s, she risked to lose everything because of another heartbeat; her love for her parents’ former staff member, Group Capt. Peter Townsend. Denying her the one thing that she ever truly asked for drove her to the arms of a man too much like her on the outside, but differing fundamentally with at the core: her husband, society photographer, Anthony Armstrong-Jones, later the Earl of Snowdon after his marriage. Finally, her frustration with her lot in life — there’s her love life, but then there’s her creeping sense that the world no longer needed a caged bird like her — drove her to party to a grave that still didn’t come early enough: by the time she died in 2002 after a series of strokes, she could hardly walk, and sadly, wasn’t even pretty anymore.

In her heyday however, Princess Margaret served as a symbol of an exuberant new world just waiting to emerge from the rubble of the Second World War. She wore Dior when the rest of her relatives wore tweeds. Princess Margaret is making headlines again, more than a decade after her death, thanks to Netflix series The Crown, where Vanessa Kirby shows the turmoil hidden by her glamorous facade. The show’s costumes, of course, heighten the effect.

Mr. Andrada’s gowns were shown late in January in a fashion show in Sofitel, as part of the hotel’s promotion Le Grand Royal Brunch, with other dates slated on April 29, July 29, and Oct. 28, featuring sumptuous brunch-themed dishes and wine and champagne.

As for Mr. Andrada’s gowns, a collection of 14 pieces, they take much inspiration from the costumes from The Crown, which in turn took inspiration from the outfits worn by the princess in real life. Glamorous shift dresses in heavy fabric with asymmetrical hemlines transports one to the 1950s, while a slinky strapless number with a raised pattern channeled the nightclubs Princess Margaret frequented.

Finally, ball gowns in white and sweet pastels might take a wearer to the fairy-tale existence that Margaret lived in during happier times. — Joseph L. Garcia

Syrian rebels shoot down Russian plane, kill pilot

AMMAN/MOSCOW — Syrian rebels shot down a Russian warplane on Saturday and killed its pilot on the ground after he ejected from the plane, Russia’s defense ministry and Syrian rebels said.

The SU-25 came down in an area of northern Idlib province that has seen heavy air strikes and fighting on the ground between Syria’s government forces backed by Russia and Iran, and rebel groups opposed to President Bashar al-Assad.

Syrians opposed to Mr. Assad see Russia as an invading force that they blame for the deaths of thousands of civilians since Moscow joined the war on the side of the government in 2015.

The US State department said it had seen reports about the incident and allegations that the US provided missiles to groups in Syria.

“The United States has never provided MANPAD missiles to any group in Syria, and we are deeply concerned that such weapons are being used,” said State department spokeswoman Heather Nauert.

“The solution to the violence is a return to the Geneva process as soon as possible and we call on Russia to live up to its commitments in that regards.”

The Russian plane was shot down over the town of Khan al-Subl near the city of Saraqeb, close to a major highway where the Syrian army and Iranian-backed militias are trying to advance, a rebel source said.

Although the Russian pilot escaped the crash, he was killed by rebels who had tried to capture him, the source said.

Tharir al-Sham, a jihadist group spearheaded by the former Syrian branch of al Qaeda, claimed responsibility for shooting down the plane on social media, saying one of its fighters had scored a direct hit with a shoulder launched anti-aircraft missile.

“This work is the least we can do to revenge our people. Let the criminal invaders know that our skies are not a picnic and they will not pass through without paying a price, God willing,” senior commander Mahmoud Turkomani said in a statement released by the group.

Russia’s defence ministry also said that the aircraft was downed by a portable surface-to-air missile. The pilot reported that he had ejected by parachute, it said, and he was later killed on the ground.

“The pilot died in a fight with terrorists,” the ministry said.

PLANE WRECKAGE
TASS news agency quoted the Russian defence ministry as saying Moscow retaliated with a strike from an undisclosed high-precision weapon that killed more than 30 militants in an area of Idlib province where the plane was downed.

The Syrian opposition released footage on social media that purported to show the wreckage of the plane and the body of the pilot surrounded by fighters.

Rebels said the downed warplane had taken part in strikes that targeted civilian convoys fleeing along a major Syrian highway from villages that the army and foreign militias had overrun.

Syria’s civil war, which is now entering its eighth year, has killed hundreds of thousands of people and driven more than 11 million from their homes.

A Russian plane was blamed for the death of seven civilians and scores of injuries after cars were targeted on the highway, according to a witness and two rebels sources.

Syrian soldiers and Iranian-backed militiamen were now around twelve kilometers from Saraqeb, advancing toward the Damascus-Aleppo highway under cover of heavy Russian air strikes, two opposition sources said.

At least five civilians were killed in Saraqeb city on Saturday, which residents blamed on Russian planes.

Syrians in rebel-held areas say they can distinguish between Russian warplanes and those of the Syrian air force, because the Russian planes fly at higher altitude.

Residents say thousands of people have been forced by air strikes to flee the area, moving further north to the safety of makeshift camps on the Syrian side of the Turkish border.

Russia’s defence ministry regularly says it targets only hardline Islamist militants in Syria. — Reuters

Brazilian Machida survives American Anders at home

BRAZILIAN mixed martial arts fighter Lyoto “The Dragon” Machida successfully defended home turf yesterday but not after having made to work and bloodied by American Erik “Ya Boi” Anders to hack out a split decision victory at “UFC Fight Night 125” at Belem, Brazil.

Exactly 11 years since making his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut, Mr. Machida made it a winning anniversary that saw him banking much on his karate background to win over erstwhile undefeated Anders, 48-47, 47-48 and 49-46, in front of his hometown fans at the Arena Guilherme Paraense in Belem.

Mr. Machida dropped Mr. Anders early in the opening round with a solid leg kick.

The American spent much of the round on his back but he successfully limited the damage inflicted to him with steady leg defense.

In the second round, the action picked up with both fighters having their moments.

The Brazilian continued to unleash leg kicks and knees which Mr. Anders countered with jabs that staggered Mr. Machida for a moment.

The third saw Mr. Machida being opened up by a knee from his opponent. But despite blood flowing profusely from his eyebrow between his eyes, Mr. Machida was undeterred and stayed aggressive to survive.

In the last two rounds, the protagonists went at each other, trying to take the momentum and possibly the win.

When the smoke cleared though, Mr. Machida’s hands were raised as the winner, sending the Brazilian fans to a celebration.

The win stopped for Mr. Machida, 39, a three-fight losing streak just as he improved to 23-8.

Mr. Anders, 30, meanwhile, absorbed his first defeat in 11 fights.

“Happy to win in front of my city. This is my return here. It’s amazing,” said Mr. Machida after his win.

“There was a lot of movement and activity tonight. He was a tough fighter and but I’m happy to come out with the win,” he added as he spoke of Mr. Anders.

Mr. Machida then called out former middleweight champion Michael Bisping for a fight next time around.

SUCCESSFUL FLYWEIGHT DEBUT
Meanwhile, former UFC women’s bantamweight fighter Valentina “Bullet” Shevchenko made it a successful debut in the flyweight division by making short work of Priscila Cachoeira by way of submission (rear-naked choke) in the second round.

Showing solid ground and pound, Ms. Shevchenko (15-3) was just too much for her opponent who never really got her game going right from the start en route to going down.

In other fights at UFC Fight Night 125: Machida vs. Anders, in a catchweight fight at 161 lbs Michel Prazeres downed Desmond Green by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28 and 30-27), heavyweight Timothy Johnson won by UD over Marcelo Golm (30-27, 29-28 and 28-28), bantamweight Douglas Silva de Andrade beat Marlon Vera by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27 and 30-27), and middleweight Thiago Santos defeated Anthony Smith by TKO (body kick and punches) in the second round.

Next for the UFC is “UFC 221” on Feb. 11 in Perth, Australia, that will be headlined by the clash for the interim middleweight title between Yoel Romero and former champion Luke Rockhold.

In the Philippines, Cignal TV, the country’s foremost direct-to-home (DTH) company, is the home of the UFC after the two groups agreed to an extensive deal that will see the UFC beamed on various platforms. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

Alaska Aces race to sixth victory in a row

THE hot streak by the Alaska Aces in the PBA Philippine Cup continued yesterday after they raced to their sixth victory in a row with a win over the GlobalPort Batang Pier, 105-98, in overtime at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City.

Using a stepped-up fight in the fourth period, the Aces clawed their way back and put themselves in a position to steal the win which they eventually consummated to fortify their spot in the top three of the standings of the season-opening tournament of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).

GlobalPort waxed hot to start the contest, outscoring Alaska, 10-0, in the first two and a half minutes of the first quarter.

The Aces though would make the necessary adjustments to stop the lead from widening, going on an 11-2 run to come within one point, 12-11, at the 6:08 mark of the opening canto.

The Batang Pier continued to hold sway the rest of the period as Jonathan Grey and Kelly Nabong took the cudgels for their team, which held a 26-20 advantage in the end.

In the second period, it was Alaska’s turn to go on a strong push, 10-6, led by Vic Manuel, to claim the upper hand, 30-26, five minutes into the frame.

GlobalPort answered back to tie the count at 31-all with 5:39 remaining, which it would steadily build on and use to establish a 48-43 advantage by the halftime break.

The nip-and-tuck affair remained in the third canto with the protagonists hardly budging against one another early on, making runs and counterruns.

The Batang Pier held a 56-52 lead midway after which they soared, 19-13, to go up, 75-65, heading into the final 12 minutes.

Employing a full-court press to begin the payoff quarter, Alaska got GlobalPort rattled.

JVee Casio and Jeron Teng towed the Aces within three points, 82-79, with 6:30 to go.

Bradwyn Guinto snapped the drought for GlobalPort with a free throw and gave them more breathing space. Teammate Stanley Pringle added another two to take their lead back to six points, 85-79, at the 5:44 mark.

Alaska guard Chris Banchero hit a triple to narrow the gap only to be answered back by Mr. Nabong moments later.

Mr. Banchero willed his way to an and-one play to push Alaska to within three points anew, 88-85, with four minutes to play.

Alaska was able to tie the count at 88-all after Mr. Casio drained a three-pointer. Calvin Abueva then hit an under-goal stab to give the Aces the lead, 90-88, with 2:23 remaining.

Mr. Pringle gave back the lead to GlobalPort, 91-90, with a long three-pointer a little over a minute left in the contest.

Kevin Racal scored underneath the goal to help Alaska go up anew, 92-91.

Mr. Nabong had a chance to give the upper hand to Batang Pier but he missed a wide-open shot near the basket with 37 seconds to go.

Alaska set up a play to extend their lead and got it after Mr. Abueva split a free throw with 18 seconds remaining, 93-91.

GlobalPort tied the count at 93-all with eight ticks left after a Pringle basket.

The Aces seized for time to plot a game-winning play but failed to get one as the game went to overtime.

In the extra period, Alaska maintained a slim two-point cushion, 98-96, entering the last two minutes.

Mr. Manuel added on it when he scored against Mr. Nabong to push Alaska ahead, 100-96, with 1:47 left to play.

The Batang Pier tried to fashion out a comeback but the Aces would hold on the rest of the way to book the conference-best sixth straight win.

Mr. Manuel led Alaska with 19 points with Messrs. Casio and Banchero each adding 16 points.

Mr. Abueva had a double-double of 12 points and 12 rebounds.

GlobalPort, meanwhile, was paced by Mr. Pringle with 28 points, eight rebounds and six assists. Sean Anthony added 21 points and 14 rebounds and Mr. Nabong had 15 points and 12 rebounds.

Alaska (6-2) next plays the NLEX Road Warriors on Feb. 11 while GlobalPort (3-4) clashes on Feb. 14 with the TNT KaTropa. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

Uggs, pigs and tartan: the big trends at men’s Paris fashion week

PARIS — Thigh-high Ugg boots, post-Weinstein men paraded as dogs, pigs, and dinosaurs and a tartan army of plaids and check — we look back on the big trends and talking points at Paris men’s fashion week:

1. MEN ARE PIGS
Men’s fashion was celebrated in Paris on the week when the fashion industry had its Weinstein moment with allegations that two star photographers had harassed and assaulted models.

Julien David, Walter Van Beirendonck, and Comme des Garcons caught the air of the times by putting dog, pig, and dinosaur heads on their models, while the American Rick Owens ripped his “clothes in anger… It’s draining to watch unhealthy cycles repeat themselves, behaviorally and historically, and it is hard to suppress a howl of rage,” he said, with his own president also in his sights.

Sacai designer Chitose Abe and French brand Etudes also took a stand against Donald Trump by using The New York Times “The Truth is Hard” slogan on their clothes to support media outlets Trump has accused of “fake news.”

2. UGG UGLY NO MORE?
They have been called “Australia’s joke on the rest of the world,” and many thought they had been confined to fashion Alcatraz. But no, Ugg boots are back and this time they are thigh-high.

Uber hip Y/Project designer Glenn Martens tried to turn the sheepskin slippers into fetish objects of desire — although the jury is out.

Martens described wearing them as putting your “feet in warm butter” and said bringing them to the crotch “keeps your thighs as well as your feet warm.”

More conventional Uggs turned up in the Sacai show with designer Abe admitting “I wear them myself in winter… even outdoors.”

3. CHECK OUT THE TARTAN
There was no doubting the dominant pattern for next winter. The skirl of tartan and check ran through three quarters of the Paris collections, making fashion week sometimes feel like one extended Burn’s Night.

From street style brands like Facetasm and Andrea Crews to White Mountaineering, Henrik Vibskov, Sacai, Agnes b, Thom Browne, and the romantic classicism of Alexander McQueen, a tartan army was one the march.

No more so than with the “Prince of Prints” Dries Van Noten, whose beautiful use of Stewart tartan may have finally rescued it from clutches of Bay City Roller kitsch.

Ironically, the British heritage brand Dunhill’s debut Paris show was a tartan-free zone, proposing instead the shiny leather business suit.

4. MAN BAGS
With so much to be money to be made, it is no surprise that fashion keeps insisting that men need the equivalent of handbags. Rare was the show this week that did not have a model holding a manbag, swinging a sack or shoulder bag slung nonchalantly over one arm.

Even Van Noten, who is normally above such things, included one. While a cat-shaped, highly strokable clutch bag was also spotted on one front row, Loewe won the originally prize for its elephant-shaped manbag which sits on the knee. Clearly a must for the man who cannot fit everything into his trunk.

5. BOOTS WITH SUITS
Whether it is the influence of the television series Peaky Blinders or to man-up more fey androgynous looks, robust boots walked all over every other form of footwear on the catwalk. Dr. Martens were omnipresent with even Dior paying homage with their own versions of the butch work boots, while Rick Owens won many new fans with his suede “hover bovver” boots with extended soles.

Boots were almost the rule under well-cut of suits, with John Galliano debuting a male version of the Tabi boot at Margiela as did wunderkind Demna Gvasalia rather cheekily at Vetements.

And Officine Generale went hell for leather with their vintage Mexican police boots, which designer Pierre Maheo said “became a reference for narco culture when many (officers) crossed over to the dark side.” — AFP

Italian man opens fire at blacks

ROME — An Italian man opened fire on African migrants in the central city of Macerata on Saturday, injuring six people before he was captured, in what police said was a racially motivated attack.

The shootings happened just days after a Nigerian migrant was arrested in connection with the death of an 18-year-old Italian woman, whose dismembered body was discovered stuffed into two suitcases near Macerata.

Police named the suspected shooter as Luca Traini, 28, and said he had an Italian flag draped over his shoulders when he was seized in the street by armed police.

Onlookers said he made a fascist salute before being handcuffed.

“He drove around in his car and when he saw any black people he shot them,” Marcello Mancini, a Macerata resident, told Reuters television.

Police said one of the six victims was seriously hurt and needed surgery, but gave no further details.

Traini also fired shots at the offices of the ruling center-left Democratic Party (PD) in Macerata, but did not injure anyone there.

The PD said he had stood as a candidate for the rightist Northern League at local elections last year but had not received any votes.

The League backs fiercely anti-immigrant policies and is part of ex-prime Silvio Berlusconi’s center-right alliance that is leading in the polls ahead of a March 4 national election.

League leader Matteo Salvini distanced himself from the shooting, but blamed mass immigration for the tensions.

“I can’t wait to get into government to restore security, social justice and serenity to Italy,” he told reporters.

PD leader Matteo Renzi called for calm.

“The man who fired the gun, hitting six people of color, is a squalid, mad person. But the state is stronger than him,” he wrote on Facebook.

Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni said Italy would come down heavily on anyone promoting violence.

“We will stop this risk. We will stop it immediately. We will stop it together,” he said. “Hatred and violence will not be able to divide us.”

Police said the shooter drove around Macerata, which is famed for its outdoor opera festivals, in a black Alfa Romeo car firing out of his window at migrants in various locations.

With police closing in, he left his car in the city center but was almost immediately stopped.

Local media said he shouted, “Long live Italy,” as he was taken away.

Tensions in Macerata had risen this week following the gruesome discovery of Pamela Mastropietro’s body. The teenager had run away from a drug rehabilitation center on Monday and met a Nigerian asylum seeker, Innocent Oseghale, the next day.

Her body was found on Wednesday and a preliminary postmortem could not immediately identify the cause of death.

Witnesses said they had earlier seen Oseghale with the suitcases in which the body was found. He refused to talk to the police after his arrest. Newspapers said he was denied asylum last year but had remained in Macerata to appeal against the decision.

“What was this worm still doing in Italy?” Northern League leader Salvini wrote on Facebook at mid-week, accusing the center-left government of responsibility for Mastropietro’s death for allowing migrants to stay in the country.

“The left has blood on its hands.”

More than 600,000 mainly African migrants have reached Italy by boat over the past four years, and thousands have perished on the journey. The center-right bloc, which includes the League, says the vast majority have no right to asylum and has promised mass expulsions if it takes power.

Leftist parties have ruled out any such deportations.

“What happened today in Macerata shows that inciting hatred and whitewashing fascism, as Salvini does, has consequences. It can spark violence,” said Laura Boldrini, a leftist politician and the speaker of the lower house of parliament. — Reuters

Houston Rockets rout struggling Cleveland Cavs

LOS ANGELES — Chris Paul finished with 22 points and 11 assists as the Houston Rockets became the latest team to pummel LeBron James’ struggling Cleveland Cavaliers with a 120-88 win on Saturday.

The Rockets did it without a big night from James Harden who finished with 16 points, while on the other side James had just 11 points and didn’t play at all in the fourth quarter with the game out of reach.

Harden has been averaging 31 points a game this season for the Rockets, who won their fourth consecutive game and their 11th in their last 13.

Since losing at Golden State on Christmas Day, Cleveland have been humiliated in several matchups against top level NBA clubs. They lost by 28 at Minnesota, 34 in Toronto, 24 at home to Oklahoma City and now by 32 to the Rockets.

The Cavaliers looked nothing like the team that has made it to the last three NBA finals. The defending Eastern Conference champs played their second game without injured all-star forward Kevin Love, who suffered a broken left hand earlier this week and could be out for two months.

Isaiah Thomas scored 12 for Cleveland, who have lost 12 of 18 and don’t seem to have any answers on the floor for what ails them.

In Detroit, Andre Drummond had 23 points and 20 rebounds and Ish Smith tallied a season-high 25, including a clutch triple in the final minute, as the Detroit Pistons beat the Miami Heat, 111-107.

Blake Griffin helped offset a poor shooting night by making a key three pointer with 44 seconds remaining in the fourth.

The 28-year-old Griffin, who spent all eight NBA seasons with the Los Angeles Clippers before being traded to the Pistons on Monday, missed his first five shots from beyond the arc before making one in the final minute. He finished six-of-19 from the field with 16 total points.

GRIFFIN MAKES THREE
The Pistons won their third straight game since the trade and are 2-0 with Griffin in uniform as they pulled within a game of .500 with a 25-26 record on the season.

Goran Dragic scored 33 points for the Heat, who have lost three in a row. Miami was missing center Hassan Whiteside, who was sidelined with an illness.

With the Pistons ahead by four and 44 seconds to play, Griffin hit a triple to give Detroit a 108-101 lead.

Dragic responded with a four-point play, making a three-pointer while being fouled with 32 seconds left.

Detroit ran the clock down and on the next possession Griffin found a wide-open Smith who sank his only three-point attempt of the game with 14 seconds left to restore the lead to six points.

Elsewhere, Tobias Harris scored 24 points in his Clippers debut, leading Los Angeles to a 113-103 victory over the Chicago Bulls.

Danilo Gallinari also had 24 points, Lou Williams added 21 points and six assists, and Montrezl Harrell scored 14 as the Clippers won for the third time in four games. — AFP

All-day wear Air Max 270 to be released in March

THE POPULAR Nike Air Max takes on a new iteration in the Air Max 270 which will be made available locally in March.

Hailed as a 100% lifestyle Air shoe, the 270 is designed with the same rigor as sport performance but also perfect for all-day wear.

It boasts of a 32-mm heel bag — the tallest-ever Max Air Heel Unit — which offers a super-soft bounce perfect for long days out.

The Air Max 270 takes inspiration from the Air Max 93 and 180, with the “270” coined by Nike designers in reference to the 270 degrees of visibility in the air unit found in the 93.

National Basketball Association superstar and champion Kevin Durant of the Golden State Warriors was one of the first to rock the 270 and came away impressed, particularly with the Air Max 270 unit height that offers the biggest heel volume displacement for maximum air cushion comfort.

Nike said the 270 will feature a variety of silhouettes and colors throughout the year.

The Nike Air Max 270 will be available starting March 2 at select Nike stores, Commonwealth, Sole Academy, The Athlete’s Foot and Capital with a retail price of P7,645. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

Germany’s potential coalition partners agree on energy, wrangle over health

BERLIN — German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives and the Social Democrats (SPD) reached agreement on energy and agriculture on Saturday, but were still in dispute over health care during talks to form a government, more than four months after the election.

The two camps aimed to seal a deal by the end of Sunday to renew the “grand coalition” that has governed since 2013, although some politicians say they could run into Monday or Tuesday.

Speaking at the end of talks on Saturday, conservative politician Michael Grosse-Broemer said the two blocs intended to stick to the timeframe but issues like labor policy, health care and rents still needed to be resolved.

“The coalition treaty is slowly taking shape but we’ll only be able to say with more certainty tomorrow whether it will come to a conclusion,” he said.

SPD deputy Manuela Schwesig urged the conservatives to compromise on abolishing fixed-term contracts for workers and reforming Germany’s public-private health care system.

“I don’t think Mrs. Merkel can explain why there can’t be any movement there,” she said as she arrived for talks.

The SPD wants to prove to its sceptical members that it would be able to push through those core policies in the role of junior partner to make another “grand coalition” more appealing.

Many of the SPD’s 443,000 members — who will get to vote on any coalition deal — would prefer their party to revamp in opposition rather than join another alliance with Merkel after suffering their worst post-war election result in September.

Health care is a big stumbling block and party sources said Merkel and her Bavarian ally Horst Seehofer discussed the issue before meeting the SPD.

Most Germans have public health insurance, but a minority, mainly high earners, have private insurance instead. The SPD wants to replace the system with one insurance system for all, a change the conservatives reject.

Talks are now expected to focus on improving public health care, such as by changing billing rules for doctors, who earn more by treating private patients.

The parties are not expected to come to an agreement on the most controversial issues, which include health care and labor market policy, until the near the end of negotiations.

The conservatives have offered to ban the repeated renewal of fixed-term contracts but do not want to prevent employers from using them as the SPD demands.

The two camps made some progress on labor policy on Friday by agreeing that employees in companies with more than 45 workers should have the right to move seamlessly back and forth between full- and part-time employment.

ENERGY AND FARMING
In a sign they are getting closer to a deal, the parties reached an accord on energy and the environment, agreeing to set legally binding climate targets for sectors like energy, transport, agriculture and construction to reach by 2030.

Environment Minister and SPD member Barbara Hendricks said national climate targets for 2020 would not be quite reached but the new targets, which would be written into law in 2019, would ensure Germany can remain a “climate protection pioneer.”

They also agreed on agriculture, saying they wanted to put an end to the use of weedkiller glyphosate as quickly as possible and ban the cultivation of genetically modified plants.

They reached a deal on migration on Friday, agreeing to stick to the wording of January’s coalition blueprint that said the parties did not expect annual migration to exceed 220,000 per year.

But the two blocs were still wrangling over its meaning on Saturday, with Joachim Herrmann — a member of Merkel’s CSU Bavarian allies who have called for an upper limit — telling the Rheinische Post his party had secured a migrant cap.

SPD deputy Ralf Stegner said the number was merely a prediction, writing on Twitter: “The fact remains that the SPD has not agreed to any upper limit and will not do so.”

Migration is a sensitive issue given the influx of more than a million migrants since mid-2015 and the conservatives’ subsequent loss of support to the anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany in September’s national election. — Reuters

Batangas City, Navotas pick up win no. 2 to share MPBL lead

BATANGAS CITY — Whether playing away or at home, the Batangas City Athletics-Tanduay and the Navotas Clutch have found ways to win.

The Athletics endured an explosive game from ex-PBA star Gary David behind a balance scoring production en route to an easy 88-73 triumph over the Bataan Defenders-BaiShipping late Saturday night at the Batangas City Coliseum.

Mr. David, a scoring champion in the PBA for several years, knocked in 32 points, but failed to get much support from the rest of the Defenders, who dropped to their second loss in as many games.

While Bataan appeared to be a one man show, Batangas City relied on everyone and not on anyone.

The Athletics drew double-digit production from seven players with Val Acuña leading the way with 13 points.

Moncrief Rogado and Paul Varilla contributed 11 apiece while Jaymo Eguilos, Lester Alvarez and Bernabe Teodoro had 10 each in a display of balance firepower by Batangas City.

Despite the win, Batangas City coach Mac Tan wasn’t satisfied.

“I’m not fully satisfied because we underestimated our opponents,” said Mr. Tan. “We prepared to run, but we didn’t take care of the ball.”

By halftime, the heavily favored Athletics led by a slim 37-36 edge, but after getting a tongue-lasher from Tan, the home team behind Messrs. Acuña, Alvarez and Rogado, conspired in a dizzying 11-2 run to turn a 44-all count to a 55-46 advantage and Batangas City never looked back from there.

If Batangas City won decisively, Navotas went through a wringer.

The Clutch needed to go to an extra period before outlasting an equally tough Bulacan Kuyas-Ligo Sardines, 77-76, in the league’s first overtime game.

Gino Jumao-as finished with 16 points, including back-to-back jumpers in overtime as the Clutch joined the Athletics in a share of the lead with a 2-0 record. — Rey Joble

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