History repeats! Well kind of. Way back in 1986 the Toronto Argonauts lost to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in a two-game total point duo of games and the Ticats went on to win the Grey Cup over the Edmonton Eskimos. What was so unusual was that for the first six quarters Toronto was dominant and when halftime rolled around in the second game all logic said easy victory. Well in the end, Hamilton won 59-56 as Toronto self-imploded and Hamilton capitalized. Fast forward some 27 years and again Toronto dominated (in the first half) and Hamilton came back to win in impressive fashion in the second half and won 36-24. I thought there were three key aspects that determined the game. First, Hamilton scored to end the first half to make the game 24-17 as compared to 24-10 if Hamilton did not score. All of a sudden it was a one-touchdown game. Its much easier to play a second half when you know you only need one touchdown. And that is what happened on the first drive of the second half with a Tiger-Cats touchdown and a 24-24 game. And confidence went from the team in blue to the team in white very fast. Ticats dominated time of possession almost 2 to 1. That was so surprising because during the regular season no team was better at avoiding two plays and a punt more than Toronto. But they had four in the game and three in the third quarter. By the start of the fourth Hamilton was in complete control. The final issue was red zone efficiency. To end the season the Argos were the best in red zone defence. Now you could move the ball with ease from the 20 to the 20 but all year anything inside the 20 the Argos stopped. Not Sunday afternoon, with 30 points scored by Hamilton from the 20 and in with three touchdowns and three field goals. Different Script Out west, yes I thought Calgary could win it by three but completely mis-evaluated the significance of the absence of the two defensive tackles Demonte Bolden and Micah Johnson. Big guys cant do a little guys job in football and little guys cant do a big mans job either. The seven turnovers killed any chance for Calgary but even if the turnovers were significantly less I still dont think Calgary wins. The Riders beat Calgary as much as Calgary beat themselves. Truth is that the West Semifinal was a greater threat to the Riders than the final itself. The BC Lions were close to beating Saskatchewan while the Stampeders never really came close. Grey Cup Promise With both Saskatchewan and Hamilton in the Grey Cup there are many unique stories to unfold. Kent Austin back in Regina. Same with Henry Burris and Andy Fantuz. A third home Grey Cup team in a row and this time with the best football fans. Darian Durant trying for his first Grey Cup win after two losses. George Cortez as an offensive coordinator competing against a team he was the head coach of not long ago. The one hundred and first Grey Cup is easy to make entertaining and interesting. There is no doubt that the Tiger-cats will be heavy underdogs come Sunday and they should be. The Riders beat Hamilton twice, at home 37-0 and at University of Guelph with Drew Willy at quarterback. But until the game is played you never know. Because you know that as a head coach Kent Austin will take an "us against the world" approach. Hell say that nobody gives us a chance and we "have them exactly where we want them". Corey Chamblin will be sending a message more towards "dont underestimate anyone", especially a team that started 1-4, and finished 10-4. Either way in the city of Regina you are guaranteed a great week with two new teams, the hometown fans and two quarterbacks closer to ending their careers than starting them. This years Grey Cup could be one of the best in many different ways. Adidas NMD Uk Online Shop . Moments after scoring and setting off another wild celebration at Minsk arena, Platt leapt into the arms of Belarusian captain Alexei Kalyuzhny. Adidas NMD Uk Release . Its the second of three meetings between these teams this season. Vancouver was a 2-1 winner on home ice December 22nd. http://www.clearancenmduk.com/. Kyle Shanahan was hired as offensive co-ordinator Monday after spending the previous four years in the same role with the Washington Redskins. Adidas NMD Cheap Uk . The Cavs announced the move Saturday, one day after LeBron James said hes returning to Cleveland. A 12-year veteran, Haywood has played in 794 NBA games, averaging 6. Adidas NMD Cheapest Price .m. ET, CBSOPENING LINE — Colts by 5RECORD VS. SPREAD — Cincinnati 8-8, Indianapolis 11-5SERIES RECORD — Colts lead 18-10LAST MEETING — Colts beat Bengals 27-0, Oct.MINNEAPOLIS -- The Toronto Raptors have had every excuse to give in this season. Theyve had injuries to key players, turned the roster over significantly with an early season trade and had low expectations after a regime change portended a possible tear down and rebuild. Kyle Lowry doesnt make excuses. Dwane Casey doesnt make excuses. And the Raptors havent given an inch while climbing the Eastern Conference ladder. Lowry had 20 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists for his fourth career triple-double, lifting the Raptors to a 111-104 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday night. DeMar DeRozan added 25 points and seven rebounds and Steve Novak hit five 3-pointers for the surprising Raptors (35-26), who have won nine of their last 11 games to surge to third place in the East. They are nine games over .500 for the first time since 2006-07. "We try to keep everybodys spirits high even if its not going well on the basketball court and we dont let nothing get down on us," said DeRozan, whose team shot 58.3 per cent (14 for 24) on 3-pointers. "Thats the cool thing about our team. We continue to keep it going." Kevin Love had 26 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists, and Nikola Pekovic added 17 points and 11 rebounds for the Timberwolves. Minnesota has started a crucial four-game homestand with two losses in three games, and the teams hopes of climbing from 10th in the West into the playoff picture are looking bleak. "Weve got to go out and win games were not supposed to win," Wolves coach Rick Adelman said. "Thats the approach you have to take. If youre going to get down and you start moping about it, youre going to lose again." The Raptors got some bad news early in the day when they learned Patrick Patterson, a key member of the bench during their post-Rudy Gay trade surge, would miss the next seven to 10 days with a sprained right elbow. But just as they have done over the last two months, the Raptors found someone else to step up. Novak had played less than 13 minutes over the last month, but he scored a season-high in 18 minutes and Terrence Ross (15), Amir Johnson (15) and Greivis Vasquez (12) all reached double figures in scoring as well to earn a toughh road win.dddddddddddd "I cant say enough good things about those guys cause its going to take all of us, especially with Patrick being out," Casey said. The Wolves entered the night five games behind Dallas and Phoenix for the eighth and final spot in the West. Theyve now lost two of the first three games of a crucial four-game homestand. They put up a fight in this one, trimming a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to 93-91 with five minutes to play. But Lowry drilled a 3-pointer, the Raptors locked down with the kind of defence that has gotten them this far and DeRozan finished the Wolves off with a 3-pointer from the left wing to improve Toronto to 26-2 when leading after three quarters. "Twenty games left, anything can happen," Love said. "We obviously have to go on some sort of a run. But if those other teams keep winning and pulling games out of their you-know-what, were in trouble." When Love sat down for a rest in the second quarter, the Raptors blasted Minnesota with a 15-0 run to take a 46-33 lead. Love ended the run with a jumper, fed Pekovic three straight times with pinpoint entry passes and also drew a charge during a 17-2 run that gave Minnesota a 50-48 lead. DeRozan and Ross both went to the bench early in the third quarter when they each picked up their fourth fouls and thats when Lowry took over. He was tenacious in his attack, hitting two jumpers and feeding Vasquez for a 3 to put Toronto up 75-68. He also played a big role in getting Wolves point guards Ricky Rubio and J.J. Barea in foul trouble with his aggressive penetration. "We needed all of his assists. He did a good job getting in there, penetrating, finding people," Casey said. We needed all his rebounds, especially with the way they crash the boards. He just had an all-around game." NOTES: Love made four 3-pointers, including one in the third quarter that broke Rashad McCants franchise record for 3s in a season. McCants made 142 3-pointers in 2007-08 to set the previous franchise record. ... The Raptors reserves outscored Minnesotas 32-16 for the game. ... Barea had another tough night, going 2 for 8 for five points. ... The Raptors recalled Dwight Buycks from the NBDLs Bakersfield Jam on Sunday. ' ' '