MAMMOTH LAKE, Calif. -- Shaun White skipped the Friday morning Olympic snowboarding qualifier to get some needed rest, a calculated risk considering the two-time Olympic gold medallist still wasnt assured of a spot in Sochi for his signature event. Two thrilling trips down Mammoth Mountain later in the afternoon all but solved that problem. Oh, and they sent a message too. The sports greatest ever is still on top of his game. In fact, hes building on it. Soaring through the California air looking very much like someone intent on making history, White dominated the afternoon session, posting a score of 98.6 to move closer to one of the four spots on the U.S. Olympic halfpipe team. Even better, he did it while landing the latest wrinkle in his ever-expanding repertoire. White nailed a frontside double-cork 1440 in competition for the first time during his second run, a trick he spent the run-up to Sochi obsessing over. The payoff came in the middle of his run as he packed four full twists and two flips inside in one physics-defying leap. Not bad considering a needed win was already assured. White posted a 97 during his first run, which included his usual double McTwist 1260. The new skill adds half a rotation, which he says changes it completely. Maybe, but the results havent changed a bit. White pumped his fists when his score was posted in a mixture of relief and joy. "I was treating it like an Olympic event, which it is," White said. "I wanted to up my score. I wanted to do something under pressure ... Im happy I landed it." It also avoided any second-guessing after White decided to skip the morning event after a busy Thursday in which he wiped out during a slopestyle qualifying event to return to the top of the hill hours later and win, securing a berth on the U.S. Olympic slopestyle team in the process. "I just figured if I could pull it out yesterday I should be able to do it today and that inspired me to get up and make it happen," White said. "Taking the morning off was the best call I think Ive made." Looked like it. Scotty Lago, who won bronze behind White in Vancouver in 2010, thrust himself back into the mix for Sochi by finishing second. Taylor Gold wrapped up his seat in Sochi by finishing third. The U.S. is so stacked in the halfpipe making the Olympic team could be even more difficult than reaching the podium in Russia. Yet White left little doubt the chasm hes created between himself and the rest of the world hasnt moved much in the last four years. "I was really on the edge of my physical abilities," White said. "I was so fatigued from slopestyle. But I did a run that Ive never ever in my career done, so Im happy. Ive got to push through all the way to Sochi. Ive just got to keep going." The field behind Gold, White and Greg Bretz is a jumbled mess, with a half-dozen jockeying for the one spot that remains up for grabs. Its a field that now includes enigmatic Danny Davis after Davis pulled out a stunning win during the morning session. The 25-year-old was considered the snowboarder with the best shot at challenging White in Vancouver. Davis even beat White in a qualifying event barely a month before the games only to have his pelvis crushed in an all-terrain vehicle accident. Hes spent most of the last quadrennial trying to stay healthy. During a dynamic run, he looked more than healthy. He looked competitive. His 95.20 was enough to edge Gold by 1.2 points and give Davis hope of joining White in Sochi. "Ive had a rough four years of getting hurt and this year was about getting good at snowboarding again," Davis said. "If I make the Olympic team, its cool because its another accomplishment in my life Ive yet to make." Kelly Clark, who took gold in Salt Lake City in 2002, remained perfect by sweeping both womens events on Friday. The two-time Olympic medallist is guaranteed a spot on the team. The other three spots are a toss-up, though 2006 Olympic champion and 2010 silver medallist Hannah Teter bolstered her bid by finishing third and now has two straight top-four finishes. Los Angeles Lakers Shirts . -- D. J. Williams finally has his packing strategy down. Stitched Lakers Jerseys . Thats the feeling that eight Canadian Football League teams are experiencing right now in advance of the expansion draft to stock the Ottawa Redblacks. https://www.lakersjerseycheap.com/ . The R&A announced Monday that golfs oldest championship will return to Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland for the first time since Max Faulkner won in 1951. Lakers Jerseys 2020 . -- The Chicago Bears have agreed to a one-year contract with cornerback Kelvin Hayden. Cheap Lakers Jerseys . General Manager Sam Presti said the three-time All-Star had knee swelling that would not subside, and the procedure was intended to solve the problem. He said doctors determined that a loose stitch was to blame for the swelling, that Westbrooks lateral meniscus has healed properly and the procedure was successful.NEW YORK, N.Y. - A chance to gain ground in the playoff race was there, until Jarrett Jack took it away. Now the New York Knicks have 3,000 miles to think about how this game — and maybe any realistic post-season hopes they had — was lost. Jack scored a season-high 31 points Sunday night in the Cleveland Cavaliers 106-100 victory over the Knicks, who had their eight-game winning streak snapped. The Knicks wasted a chance to pull within two games of a playoff spot before leaving for a five-game Western Conference trip that starts Tuesday against the Lakers. "This was a huge opportunity lost, one we cant afford," Knicks guard J.R. Smith said. "But we cant get it back. Weve just got to go on the road, win some games and try to come back home and win." Hours after being handed a chance to get closer to the final spot in the Eastern Conference when Atlanta blew a fourth-quarter lead in Toronto, the Knicks responded with an inept final period of their own after they led by 17 points in the first half. They couldnt stop Jack and couldnt get a basket from Carmelo Anthony, who missed all five shots in the final period and finished with 32 points. New York remained three back with 12 to play. "Its tough. We shouldve won this game. We gave it away. They earned it, they beat us. We didnt play well coming down the stretch or in the second half and they did," Anthony said. "But its behind us now, theres nothing we can do about that." Jack scored 23 in the second half after coach Mike Brown challenged his team at halftime. "It was just about making a stand and each individual person making a stand and then collectively as a team us all bringing that same mindset to the table," Jack said. "Thats pretty much what it was about. I just thought guys responded." Jack finished with 10 assists for the Cavaliers, who snapped a four-game losing streak. Dion Waiters scored 22 points and Luol Deng had 13 in his return from a three-game absence with a sprained left ankle for the Cavs, who didnt miss All-Star Kyrie Irving because Jack torched the Knicks for 13 points in the fourth quarter on 6-of-7 shooting. "I just challenged them. Thats all. I didnt say thatt much," Brown said.dddddddddddd"The guys in the locker room, they decided to go play and they went out and got it done." New York was missing ailing Iman Shumpert, their best perimeter defender who surely wouldve gotten a chance to defend Jack since nobody else could. The Knicks, who suddenly were back in the playoff race after looking out of it after a seven-game skid dropped them to 21-40 after a loss in Detroit on March 3, will have to bounce back on the road. The Hawks had already lost at Toronto by the time the Knicks showed up for work Sunday. Coach Mike Woodson said he was glad but didnt appear overjoyed, realizing the Knicks still have plenty to do to get to the 35 to 40 wins he think will be necessary to earn a playoff spot. "Its good that they lose, but again, its about what we do at this point," Woodson said before the game. Even getting to 35 wins will be difficult considering they still have games against Miami and Chicago, plus two apiece against Brooklyn and Toronto after their trip. New York made 15 of 21 shots (71 per cent) in the first quarter, getting 14 points from Anthony and taking a 34-27 lead when Smith made a 28-footer with 0.2 seconds left. The Knicks pushed the lead to 17 in the second when Pablo Prigioni made a 3-pointer, then stole the ball and threw an alley-oop pass that Smith slammed down to finish off a fast break and make it 51-34. But down 61-46 at halftime, Cleveland scored the first nine of the second half to get within six, and the Knicks never really got the momentum back. The Cavs used an 11-4 spurt to tie it at 90 on Jacks jumper with 7:29 remaining, then Dengs 3-pointer gave them a 93-92 edge with 5:46 to play. Anthonys free throws gave the Knicks their last lead, but Jack knocked down a jumper, Waiters made a 3-pointer and Anderson Varejao had an easy dunk after a pick-and-roll to make it 100-94 with 2:37 remaining. New York cut it to two, but Jack answered with another jumper, finishing two points shy of his career high. Smith finished with 18 points. NOTES: New York had won the previous five meetings at home. ... On Noche Latina, Spanish for Latin night, former St. Johns star Felipe Lopez announced the starting lineups in Spanish. ' ' '