EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Barring an injury, Victor Cruz is going to play for the New York Giants on Saturday in the annual preseason game against the Jets.Cruz, who has not played in a game since injuring a knee against Philadelphia in his sixth game in 2014, got through a week of practice without aggravating a groin injury that kept him out of preseason games against Miami and Buffalo.Coach Ben McAdoo said he planned to use Cruz early in the game.Im ready, Cruz said after practice on Thursday. Obviously its been a long time coming. I had a good week of practice, everything feels great so Im just excited to put that out there on the game field for the first time in a long time.Cruz said this is more than a preseason game to him, and there is some truth to that.General manager Jerry Reese said he wants to see the oft-injured Cruz play two preseason games.The Giants have a number of young receivers, led by Odell Beckham Jr. and second-round draft pick Sterling Shepard.Cruz could give Eli Manning another option if he can stay healthy, but if the 29-year-old cant stay on the field his place on the 53-man roster could be in jeopardy.This one is crossing so many hurdles, so many barriers, Cruz said. So many ups and downs that I had to face to get to this moment. Now, Im just ready to relax and go play some football again. To me, this game is bigger than just the game. Although its just a preseason game, for me, mentally and emotionally, physically, its more than just a football game.McAdoo said Cruz got through a three-hour practice on Wednesday in good shape.When he first got out here this week, he showed a burst and showed some acceleration, he can put his foot in the ground, McAdoo said. He had a really nice release on a slant, which reminded me of the Houston game a few years ago, so it is encouraging.McAdoo said Cruz showed some flashes of his best days early in training camp before the groin injury.Manning said it was good having Cruz back at practice, adding he looked fast, explosive and healthy.I think hes had a good understanding of the timing of this offense and when the ball is going to be coming his way, Manning said.Hes always been a special guy in the slot just having a good feel. Giving sticks and its been easy for me to read his body language when hes coming in and out of breaks. Its good that we still have that.---Online:AP NFL website: http://www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL coverage on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL SWell Marble Bottle Nz . The recently retired Stern was elected Friday to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and will be enshrined with the class of 2014 on Aug. Swell Water Bottle Clearance . -- Edmontons Val Sweeting is two wins away from a trip to Winnipeg to play in Canadas Road of the Rings in December. http://www.swellbottlesnz.com/ . The showiest items on Calgarys lot were forwards Mike Cammalleri and Lee Stempniak. Both will be unrestricted free agents this summer. Swell Bottle Black . With the first unit struggling of late and Amir Johnson - one of the teams iron men - hobbling on an injured right ankle, Patterson knew he could get the nod in a challenging matchup against one of the leagues up and coming players at his position. Swell Water Bottle Nz . Robredo, ranked No. 16, bounced back from an upset loss to Leonardo Mayer in the second round of the Royal Guard Open in Chile last week to down Carreno Busta in 1 hour, 25 minutes. On a day filled mostly with qualifying matches, fifth-seeded Marcel Granollers of Spain also entered the second with a 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 win over Aljaz Bedene of Slovenia, while Guido Pella of Argentina defeated Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain 7-6 (6), 6-4 to advance. EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Brian Sears appears on the ballot for harness racings Hall of Fame for the first time later this summer.Sears could burnish his credentials with another victory Saturday night in the $732,050 Meadowlands Pace for 3-year-olds when he drives Control The Moment.Sears won the Meadowlands Racetracks signature event with Rocknroll Hanover in 2005.It was one of the career highlights for Sears, a third-generation horseman, who has won over $172 million to rank fifth all time. Sears, 48, is closing in on 10,000 wins.He was the only candidate approved by the Hall of Fame screening committee earlier this month at Goshen, N.Y.Previous Hall of Fame inductees and members of the United States Harness Writers Association will consider Sears candidacy in August. He needs 75 percent of the votes cast for induction.No doubt, it is a big honor, Sears said.Until then, Sears is focused on more immediate goals -- starting with the Pace.Control The Moment, the 5-2 second choice, captured the Pace elimination last week with a lifetime-best 1:49 2/5 mile. It was a welcome return to form for the colt voted best juvenile pacer in Canada last season.And for the first time, Sears was in the sulky.He had been in a number of tough situations with a lot of pressure put on the horse due to the fact he was such a great colt coming back as a 3-year-old, Sears said. There were a lot of expectations.It was an impressive win, with Control The Moment rocketing past rivals in deep stretch to log hiss 10th victory in 15 starts.ddddddddddddI was really pleased with the effort, Sears said. It was a nice trip. Those horses were coming back to me a little bit. My horse hadnt been used.Control The Moment starts from post 3.Racing Hill, the 9-5 favorite, starts alongside in post 4. The winner of the Hempt Stakes at Pocono Downs received a bye into the Pace final.Speed is Racing Hills best asset, setting up what could be a lively battle for the early lead.With my spot, Im obviously in a position where we have to go forward, Sears said. I have to be aggressive myself and make decisions from there. Im sure there will be a few of them leaving out of there.The biggest supporting event on the Pace night card is the $471,800 William Haughton Memorial for older pacers featuring the big three in the division: Always B Miki, Freaky Feet Pete and Wiggle It Jiggleit, the defending Harness Horse of the Year and the 2015 Meadowlands Pace winner.The full field for the Meadowlands Pace, in post position order with drivers and odds: Another Daily Copy, Trace Tetrick, 30-1; Good Living, Corey Callahan, 30-1; Control The Moment, Sears, 5-2; Racing Hill, Brett Miller, 9-5; Lyons Snyder, David Miller, 9-2; Boston Red Rocks, Tim Tetrick, 6-1; Manhattan Beach, Joe Bongiorno, 20-1; JK Will Power, Yannick Gingras, 8-1; Check Six, Matt Kakaley, 15-1 and Talk Show, Scott Zeron, 25-1. ' ' '
