Technik » and No. 23 Northern Iowa stayed unbeaten wi

Each week, The Reporters put their thumbs out to the good and the bad in the world of sports. This week they discuss the Americas Cup, a Canadian Tennis leader, Glen Grunwalds unceremonious exit and Tigers big year-end bonus. Bruce Arthur, National Post: My thumb is up to Team Oracle, which retained the Americas Cup by winning eight consecutive must-win races in San Francisco Bay. After falling behind 8-1, they repeatedly out-sailed New Zealand, and the glory is theirs. All it took was 11 victories in a best-of-17, since Oracle had been penalized two races for being caught in the biggest cheating scandal in the events 162-year history; one dead sailor, who perished back in May when one of the insane 130-foot-high catamarans that Oracle CEO Larry Ellision decreed be used for this version of the race tipped over; and boats so mind-bogglingly expensive that only four teams could afford to enter. But Americas win-at-all-cost billionaires beat New Zealands, and thats the bottom line. Congratulations, everyone. Well, not everyone. Steve Simmons, Sun Media: My thumb is down to James Dolan and the New York Knicks for the unceremonious and unnecessary firing of general manager Glen Grunwald. The removal of Grunwald comes after a season in which the Knicks won more games - 54 - than they have in the past 16 years. And then they went two rounds in the playoffs, something they hadnt done in 12 years. Grunwald operated the franchise with an un-New York-like calm, hiring Mike Woodson to coach, finding a certain peace between Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudamire, trading away Jeremy Lin. Rather than fire him, Dolan should done the opposite and given Grunwald a contract extension. Michael Farber, Sports Illustrated: My thumb is up to Michael Downey, the Tennis Canada CEO who is leaving to run the Lawn Tennis Association in Great Britain. Think of him as Mark Carney - the Canadian who heads the Bank of England - only with a chair umpire. This is a significant loss for Canadian tennis, which benefitted from Downeys organizational skills. Of course Id be a little more worried for the immediate future of the sport in this country if Milos Raonic bolted with Downey - like Greg Rusedski did 18 years ago. There are dozens of talented sports administrators. There are far fewer people who can thump a 135 mile-per-hour serve. This morning, Raonic won the Thailand Open, beating top seed Tomas Berdych in straight sets. Dave Hodge, TSN: My thumb is up to the PGA Tour for making Tiger Woods its Player of the Year when nobody - maybe not even Tiger Woods - would have objected strenuously if the choice had been Adam Scott. Because so much emphasis is placed on major titles, and Tigers the biggest reason for that, it might seem strange that Scott wasnt chosen for his masters win and two other top-five finishes at majors, and that tiger was chosen in a year that saw him shut out at majors - again, for the fifth straight time. But Tiger won five other tournaments, he won the most money and he is – officially - the Number One player in the world. He had the best year… he just didnt have it in the best places. Patrick Roy Avalanche Jersey . Then again, he really was at his home away from home. "It was nice to sleep in my own bed last night," Shields said after pitching Kansas City past the San Diego Padres 8-0 Wednesday. Adam Foote Jersey . -- So much for concern that running back Marshawn Lynch would be absent from the Seattle Seahawks minicamp. http://www.hockeyavalanche.com/authentic-teemu-selanne-avalanche-jersey/ . Before that, Rousey needed a total 23 minutes and 26 seconds to take care of her last eight opponents - and one of those fights lasted 10 minutes and 58 seconds. Mikko Rantanen Avalanche Jersey . Alfredo Simon lowered his ERA to 0.86, and the Reds beat the Chicago Cubs 4-1 Friday for their 16th win in their last 17 games at the Friendly Confines. J.T. Compher Jersey . TSN 1290s coverage begins with Hustler & Lawless at 3pm. Rick Ralph hosts the Official Jets Pre-game Show at 5pm.Lexington, KY (SportsNetwork.com) - Kentuckys next big test was supposed to come this weekend against a national powerhouse, not during a midweek game against an Ivy League school missing its best player. But there were John Caliparis top-ranked Wildcats, yet to score a point after five minutes against Columbia. There they were, trailing at halftime. And there they were, after 26 minutes, still yet to hold a lead. But in the end, there was enough. Aaron Harrison scored 14 points and Kentucky finally pulled away in the last 10 1/2 minutes on Wednesday night to avoid what would have been a crushing upset ahead of Saturdays game against No. 21 North Carolina. The Wildcats beat the Lions 56-46 in the first meeting between the teams since the 1966 NCAA tournament. Final Score: (10) Kansas 75, Georgetown 70 Washington, DC (SportsNetwork.com) - Brannen Greene scored 19 points and No. 10 Kansas survived to take a 75-70 victory over Georgetown on Wednesday. Frank Mason III scored 14 points and Perry Ellis gave 13 points and 10 rebounds for the Jayhawks (7-1), who have won six straight after a loss to Kentucky on Nov. 18. Joshua Smith had 20 points and five rebounds, L.J. Peak scored 18 and DVauntes Smith-Rivera gave 10 points, nine rebounds and seven assists for the Hoyas (5-3), who have lost three of their last four. Final Score: (12) Ohio State 97, High Point 43 Columbus, OH (SportsNetwork.com) - Kam Williams had 23 points off the bench to lead 12th-ranked Ohio State to a 97-43 rout of High Point on Wednesday. DAngelo Russell netted 18 points with nine rebounds, while JaeSean Tate tallied 12 points and Shannon Scott added 11 for the Buckeyes (7-1). John Brown led the Panthers (6-3) with 19 points in the loss. Final Score: (19) Maryland 67, NC Central 56 College PPark, MD (SportsNetwork.ddddddddddddom) - Rashaud Pack scored 17 points to lead No. 19 Maryland in a 67-56 victory over NC Central at the Xfinity Center. Jake Layman added 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting in a game the Terrapins hit on 63.6 percent of their first-half field goal attempts to build a 39-18 lead at the break. Melo Trimble finished with 12 points for Maryland (8-1). NC Central (6-4), the defending MEAC champions, had a five-game win streak halted despite Jordan Parks 18 points and 10 rebounds and a 14-point effort from Nimrod Hilliard. Final Score: (23) Northern Iowa 65, Denver 55 Denver, CO (SportsNetwork.com) - Seth Tuttle led four Panthers in double figures with 12 points and No. 23 Northern Iowa stayed unbeaten with a 65-55 win over Denver on Wednesday. Deon Mitchell and Wes Washpun each scored 11 points and Paul Jesperson added 10 for Northern Iowa (9-0), which shot a blistering 70 percent (21-of-30) from the floor. No one besides Tuttle (4- for-7) missed more than two shots. Cam Griffin and Nate Engesser netted 15 points apiece for Denver (4-4), which only got three points from its bench. UNIs reserves totaled 32 points. Final Score: (24) St. Johns 74, Fairleigh Dickinson 52 Queens, NY (SportsNetwork.com) - DAngelo Harrison dropped 26 points and No. 24 St. Johns toppled Fairleigh Dickinson 74-52 on Wednesday. Harrison shot 8- for-14 from the floor and sank all eight of his free throws for the Red Storm (7-1), winners in three straight following their lone loss of the season to Gonzaga. Phil Greene IV added 16 points and Chris Obekpa had a 10-point, 12- rebound double-double while also providing his usual rim protection with six blocks. Obekpa has blocked at least two shots in every game this season. Mustafaa Jones led the Knights (3-5) with 18 points. ' ' '