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PHOENIX -- Gerald Green came to the NBA straight from high school with an abundance of raw talent that never translated into a big-time pro career. Then came his off-season trade to Phoenix -- his seventh team in seven seasons -- and he seems finally to have found a home. On Thursday night, especially in one remarkable quarter, Green was as good as it gets against one of the best teams in the NBA. He scored 25 of his career-high 41 points in the third quarter and the Suns erased a 16-point deficit to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 128-122. "I havent done nothing in this league," Green said. "Every day I come into practice or come into a game, Im just trying to prove myself." Markieff Morris added 24 points, including two free throws with 24.4 seconds to play. Goran Dragic scored 22, including six of the Suns final 12 points after Oklahoma City led 118-116. Russell Westbrook scored a season-high 36 for the Thunder, who would have pulled a half-game ahead of Indiana for the NBAs best record with a victory. Kevin Durant added 34. Greens outburst fell one point shy of a Suns record for most points in a quarter set by Stephon Marbury in 2002. His career-best eight 3-pointers also was one shy of the franchise mark. "I love the way hes playing right now," Suns coach Jeff Hornacek said. "We knew he could shoot the ball. Theres not too many guys that can get on a roll like that. The thing that makes him unique (is) some guys you can get up into and maybe challenge a shot a little harder. But Gerald just jumps over everybody. Hes making shots that other guys cant get that high to shoot." It was Phoenixs second 40-point performance in four games. Dragic had 40 against New Orleans on Friday. Green set a career high for the second time this season. He had 36 at Denver on Feb. 18. In the third quarter, Green was 7 of 11, including 6 of 6 on 3s. Fouled on a 3-pointer with 6.9 seconds left, Green missed one of the three free throws or he would have tied Marburys franchise record. "I was just feeling it, man," he said. "Guys were finding me in transition. I was just being real aggressive. ... Im not afraid to take big shots. Im not afraid to take any type of shot. " The Thunder had won three in a row, but have lost four of seven. "We gave up 15 3s and we put them on the free throw line 39 times," Oklahoma City coach Scott Brooks said. "Youve got to get back. Weve been talking about it for about 10 days now. Youve got to get back in a defensive disposition when we play these teams who are small and fast and quick." Westbrook agreed. "Defensively, thats got to be our identity," he said. "We can score with the best of them, but weve got to be able to stop them." After trailing by as many as 16 in the quarter, the Suns scored the final 14 points of the third to lead 101-98 entering the fourth. The run reached 21-3 when Marcus Morris 3 put Phoenix up 108-101 with 9:34 to play. But Westbrook brought the Thunder back. He made three 3s, the last to tie it at 116 with 4:34 to play. Ibakas dunk put Oklahoma City back on top, 118-116, with 4:10 to go. Dragic tied it with a driving layup with 2:22 left, then his reverse layup gave the Suns a 118-116 lead with 2:02 left. He was fouled on the play but missed the free throw, one of 10 misses from the line by Phoenix. Oklahoma City was 19 of 19. Markieff Morris scored to make it 122-118 with 1:11 left, then Durant cut it to 122-120 with 1:01 to go. Dragics 16-footer boosted the lead to 124-120 with 45.9 seconds remaining. Durant scored again to make it 124-122 with 40.9 seconds left. But Morris made two free throws, then twin brother Marcus made two more with 5.6 seconds to go. Up by four at the half, Oklahoma City used a 13-3 surge to build a 96-80 lead on Caron Butlers fourth 3-pointer with 3:47 left in the third. Notes: The Suns were without centre Miles Plumlee for the second game in a row with a sprained shoulder. ... Phoenix G Eric Bledsoe is close to playing and could be back in any of the coming three games. ... The Thunder had won three in a row in Phoenix. ... Oklahoma Citys 41-point first quarter was its highest-scoring quarter of the season and the highest-scoring quarter for a Suns opponent. Balenciaga Shoes Discount .com) - Darius Carter and Ron Baker scored 18 points apiece to help 13th-ranked Wichita State beat Evansville 61-41 on Saturday. Brand Shoes Factory Outlet . -- Desperate to stop Tom Bradys latest comeback bid, the Miami Dolphins sought help from a reserve safety making his NFL debut after being signed Tuesday off the San Francisco 49ers practice squad. http://www.brandshoescheaponline.com/wholesale-china-yeezy-boost/yeezy-boost-350-v2.html . The team let Keaton Ellerby, James Wright and Matt Halischuk become unrestricted free agents after declining to make them qualifying offers. Ellerby, 25, appeared in 51 games for the Jets last season and had two goals and four assists. Balenciaga Triple s Wholesale . Ricciardos exclusion from the results tarnished what had been a day of celebration for local fans, who were jubilant that the Red Bull driver had apparently become the first Australian to finish on the podium at his home race. However just before midnight, stewards ruled that Ricciardos car had "exceeded consistently the maximum allowed fuel flow" and that the team refused an instruction from the races technical delegate Charlie Whiting to change the fuel-flow sensor before the race and a further request during the race to reduce the fuel flow. Air Max 270 Clearance .C. -- The RBC Cups semifinal participants were decided by a pair of overtime games.SOCHI, Russia – When the Canadian management team, headed by executive director Steve Yzerman, gathered in recent months to evaluate the crop of players that would be selected to play for Team Canada at the Sochi Olympics two central attributes emerged above all else. There was the requisite hockey sense demanded from the countrys very best and of equal importance, if not more so, was the ability to burn up and down the ice, the latter of significant consequence on the generally unfamiliar international ice surface. "I think we have a really good mix of players here that bring a lot of elements," said Doug Armstrong, the Blues GM and a member of Team Canadas management team, "but the one element they all have is skating ability." Its likely why someone like 34-year-old Joe Thornton – a member of the gold medal winning squad in 2010 and top point producer again this season, but certainly not the fleetest of foot – was not named to the team this time around, replaced by explosive types such as Matt Duchene and Jamie Benn. In fact, the Canadian roster in Vancouver featured a number of players who were probably never be described as quick – Jarome Iginla, Brendan Morrow, Dany Heatley, Eric Staal – but could get around just fine, at that point in their respective careers, on the NHL-sized ice. "I think you see some players that can play on the North American ice [that are] not quite as fleet of foot, but the space they have to get to they can get to quicker and hold it longer. From the corners to the front of the net the distance isnt as great. I think its a different style," Armstrong said. "A bigger man can have success maybe in the North American game thats a little harder to have here." Absent is a single player on this roster who cant get up and down the ice effectively. Quickly adjusting to the larger international ice surface – 15 additional feet wide – will be among the greater challenges facing the Canadians as they look to become the first back-to-back gold medal winning squad in the NHL era of the Olympics. All of which explains why swiftness on skates – not to mention the ability to move the puck with equal speed and precision – was such a fundamental asset in the selection process. Canada managed to win its first gold in 50 years on the Olympic size ice in Salt Lake City, but fell badly short four years later in Torino – they finished a distant seventh. Though other gold medal hopefuls face a similar challenge – with the vast majority of talent migrating to Russia from the NHL – the Canadians (and Americans certainly) will be required to climb a somewhat higher hill, having only played on the 200 by 100 foot surface sparingly. "Theres no question," said head coach Mike Babcock, "when youve grown up your whole life playing on one surface youre probably pretty comfortable with that surface. I know we are in North America. So theres a little adjustment, well get it worked out." One adjustment Babcock will seek is shorter shift lenngths: from the NHL standard of 45 seconds down to 40 seconds with more space to cover and ground potentially to protect.ddddddddddddHe and the coaching staff, which includes big ice expert and former Swiss National Team coach Ralph Krueger, will also stress the need to attack inside on the offensive end, rather than linger on the perimeter as an opponent would prefer. "As much wider [as] the rink is you still want to play an up and down, north and south game and I think its the strength of our team to be able to play at a high speed, high tempo, all four lines," said John Tavares, who played on the bigger ice in Switzerland during the last lockout. "I think thats where were going to be at our best." Other immediate challenges facing Canada (and just about every country) include the required role alterations demanded of NHL stars and energy-sapping jet lag, an adjustment most countries will face in some way or another. "We can talk about the size of the ice surface," said Yzerman, "but I think its adjusting to playing a lesser role. Youve got forwards that are used to playing 21-22 minutes a game that are going to play 10 and 11 and defencemen that are used to playing 27 playing 18. Thats a huge adjustment for them all." Stars and scoring champs are fighting for even the slightest bit of ice-time. Martin St. Louis was the oldest Art Ross winner in NHL history last season (he was 37) and has kept the Lightning afloat save the injured Steven Stamkos again this season, but he finds himself grinding amongst 14 forwards for an opportunity. He and Duchene, a fellow first-timer were on the outside of the forward lines on the opening day of practice at Bolshoy Ice Dome. "When I talked to St. Louis in Tampa I told him he was one of 14 forwards and that he has to grab his piece," said Babcock. "Thats what weve told everyone; theyve got to find a way to grab their piece." Babcock was flipping through lineups and line combinations from the triumphant experience in Vancouver alongside assistant coach Claude Julien and came to a very simple conclusion: things can change in a hurry. Mike Richards for instance, rose from the 14th forward to a key member of an effective trio which included Jonathan Toews and Rick Nash. "Its a competitive environment and we expect our guys to compete for their ice-time," Babcock said. The Canadian head coach got creative in his attempts to quell the effects of jet lag. Players were given a special package for the plane ride over to Sochi, a kit that included eye covers, ear plugs, melatonin, vitamins, and compression socks to reduce the possibility of swelling in the feet. They were also told to sleep no longer than four hours (some did anyway) and stay up until midnight if possible. All to curtail the effects of the drastic change in time zones. "Keep the players up," Babcock said of his goals for a practice that begin at 8pm local time. "We thought if we got some exercise at this time of night we had a better chance of staying up til midnight." ' ' '