Parker baskets gave the Spurs their first lead since it w

TOKYO - Yuki Yanagita drove in four runs from the leadoff spot, Hisashi Iwakuma was hit hard and Japan beat the Major League Baseball All-Stars 8-4 Friday to take a 2-0 lead in their five-game series.Yanagita hit a two-run triple off Iwakuma in the second for a 3-0 lead, singled in the go-ahead run in the fourth, walked against Rob Wooten in the sixth and had an RBI double off Tsuyoshi Wada in the eighth.Yanagita has a lot of bat speed, MLB manager John Farrell said. Hes aggressive, and whether it is against a left-handed pitcher or a right-handed pitcher, he has swung the bat very well.Hikaru Itoh hit an RBI single in the three-run second. NL batting champion Justin Morneau hit a two-run homer off Chihiro Kaneko in the bottom half, and the major leaguers tied it in the third when Ben Zobrist tripled and scored on Jose Altuves grounder.Nobuhiro Matsuda led off the eighth with a homer off Wada, a former teammate, that made it 7-3. Zobrist doubled in the bottom half and scored on Robinson Canos single.Iwakuma allowed five runs and 10 hits in four innings.Kaneko, the winner, gave up three runs and three hits in five innings, struck out five and walked two. Tomomi Takahashi retired the side in the ninth, completing a six-hitter.You want to represent MLB well, Morneau said. Whether were playing basketball or checkers against my wife. In the end it comes down to wanting to win. Were here to win the series. We know what we are up against, so well try to come out tomorrow and hit the ball well, so we can win the next game and go from there.NOTES: Kansas City RHP Jeremy Guthrie will start Game 3 on Saturday, while Rakuten Eagles RHP Takahiro Norimoto will take the mound for Japan. Bo Horvat Jersey . Jurrjens signed a minor league contract with Cincinnati in May, and was 2-3 with a 4.46 ERA at Triple-A Louisville. He has a 53-37 record with a 3.63 ERA in seven major league seasons, including five with Atlanta. Anders Nilsson Jersey . Kenny Miller scored from the penalty spot and Camilo Sanvezzo came off the bench to add two late goals as the Whitecaps kept their playoff hopes alive with a 3-0 victory over the sagging Impact on Saturday afternoon. http://www.cheapcanucksjerseys.com/ .com) - The Los Angeles Dodgers made it official Tuesday and signed pitcher Brandon McCarthy to a four-year contract. Cheap Adidas Canucks Jerseys . On Thursday, they signed former Browns linebacker DQwell Jackson. Terms of the deal were not immediately available. Sam Gagner Jersey . Colorado came up big against Chicago last spring, and repeated that performance Tuesday night. Varlamov stopped 36 shots and Paul Stastny had a goal and an assist for the Avalanche in a 5-1 victory over the Blackhawks.The San Antonio Spurs fought off a valiant effort from the Dallas Mavericks in Game 1 of their Western Conference quarterfinal and will go for a 2-0 series lead Wednesday night when the two long-time rivals clash at AT&T Center. On Sunday afternoon, the Spurs trailed 81-71 with 7:45 to play, but closed the game on a 19-4 run. They finished with a 90-85 victory and a 10-game winning streak against their Texas neighbors. "Made some stops, that generates offense. We needed it," San Antonios All- Star guard Tony Parker said of the run. San Antonio couldnt buy a 3-pointer as Manu Ginobili was the only Spur to convert one in Game 1. He went 3-of-6 from 3-point range, but the Spurs went just 3-of-17 (17.6 percent) as a team. It shot a blistering 43.3 percent (42- of-97) from downtown in four games against Dallas this season. The difference on Sunday was Tim Duncan. The future Hall of Famer finished with 27 points and seven rebounds. "We got killed on threes in the first four outings this year," Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki said. "We stayed home a little more on 3-point shooters, but youve got to give them something, and Duncan in there is obviously still solid." Parker posted 21 points, six assists and four rebounds for the top-seeded Spurs, who finished with the NBAs best record at 62-20. Ginobili finished with 17 points and six rebounds, while Kawhi Leonard registered a double- double with 11 points and 10 boards. Devin Harris led Dallas with 19 points, followed by 11 apiece from Nowitzzki, Monta Ellis and Brandan Wright.dddddddddddd Vince Carter chipped in 10 off the bench. The late-game run was sparked by, of course, Duncan. He banked in a turnaround and then put in a runner to begin the surge before Tiago Splitter tied the game at 81-81 with a layup with 4:54 remaining. Consecutive Parker baskets gave the Spurs their first lead since it was 50-49 when there was 8:14 left in the third. Wright split a pair of foul shots to pull Dallas within 86-82 with 2:05 on the clock, but it never got any closer. Splitter sunk two foul shots at the other end and the Mavericks missed three of their final four shots from the field. "Its obvious that we did a lot of great things," Dallas head coach Rick Carlisle told the teams website. "We built a lead, but 7 1/2 minutes is a long time in an NBA game and youve got to be able to sustain. Weve got to work on getting another lead in Game 2 and then closing." The Spurs received some good news on Tuesday when Gregg Popovich was named Coach of the Year. He became the third coach to earn the honor three times, joining Pat Riley and Don Nelson. "I feel very honored for a whole lot of reasons," said Popovich. "First, there were so many coaches that did such a great job this year. To be singled out is pretty humbling. "When you win an award, it comes down to the players. Theyve been unbelievable for me. Without their play, diligence and professionalism, I know this wouldnt happen." Game 3 will be Saturday evening in Dallas. ' ' '