LONDON -- It was a different kind of fortnight at the All England Club.The mens final was absent Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal or Novak Djokovic for the first time in 14 years.And after three near-misses in Grand Slams, Serena Williams finally hoisted the trophy that brought her even with the great Steffi Graf.With that, our 2016 Wimbledon awards:MVPNic Atkin: Few people thought Sam Querrey could hold his nerve and close out a win against Djokovic after taking the two first sets before their third-round match was suspended for the day. But credit to the American for getting the job done.Peter Bodo: Marcus Willis gets the nod over Serena Williams because he saved a truly dreary first week. His improbably run helped offset Brexit anxiety and Englands stunning loss to Iceland in the UEFA Cup.Greg Garber: Serena, hands down. She leaves the All-England Club with two silver trophies and equals the great Steffi Grafs Open era record of 22 major singles titles.Matt Wilansky: A rhetorical question. Serena, who won the singles and doubles titles, is the only logical choice. Only question moving forward is whether shell catch Margaret Court as the all-time leader in Slam wins (24).Top matchAtkin:?Federer-Marin Cilic in the mens quarterfinals. Even by Federers mighty standards, this was one of his great wins, pulling off a Houdini act to save three match points and come back from two sets down.Bodo: Serena over Angelique Kerber in the womens final. It was extremely high quality despite being just two sets. And it was historic as well.Garber: Federer-Cilic. Fantastic twists and turns -- and perhaps a final flourish for the 17-time Grand Slam champion at Wimbledon?Wilansky: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga dug himself out of an impossible two-set hole to escape John Isner 19-17 in the fifth. The match ran 4 hours, 24 minutes -- the longest of the tournament.Biggest disappointment?Atkin: After almost beating Serena in the third round last year, Heather Watson had a poor showing 12 months on, losing in the first round to Annika Beck. No one was more disappointed than the Briton, who angrily slammed her racket to the turf during the match, earning a $12,000 fine.Bodo: Garbine Muguruza had a chance to position herself as the leading candidate to succeed Serena. Instead, she played a poor, low-energy second-round match against Jana Cepelova.Garber: Djokovic, who lost in the third round to Sam Querrey. Seemed like after finally winning the French Open, he took his foot off the gas.Wilansky: Could make a case for Djokovic, but cant blame him for still reveling in his French Open laurels. Instead, the dubious honor belongs to wonderkid Dominic Thiem, who fell meekly in the second round.Biggest surpriseAtkin:?Willis won six matches to qualify for the main draw, then shocked Ricardas Berankis, a player ranked 718 places above him, to earn a Centre Court date with Roger Federer and a check for ￡50,000.Bodo: Despite a few good weeks, Kerber basically struggled after she beat Serena for the Australian Open title. She bounced back from a dreadful first-round loss in Paris to make another major final and vault to No. 2 in the rankings.Garber:?Querrey, for sure. The American put it all together and made his first major quarterfinal. Lets see if this gives him momentum to get to the next level.Wilansky: Venus Williams. At 36 years old, no one thought she had a semifinal run left in her -- except Venus herself. Tony Wolters Jersey . 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Varlamov made 33 saves and Ryan OReilly had a goal and scored in the shootout as the Avalanche beat the New Jersey Devils 2-1 on Thursday night. COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- Coming off a 27-win season and its first trip to the Sweet 16 since 2003, Maryland fields a team with one returning starter and six freshmen.Its been a different kind of October for coach Mark Turgeon, who last year fielded a veteran-laden team ranked No. 3 in the preseason Top 25 poll.Because it was the first time in a while we had been ranked so high, it was a lot on the guys, Turgeon acknowledged Tuesday.And this team?Theyve got a chip on their shoulder, Turgeon said. Theyre hungry.Diamond Stone, Jake Layman, Robert Carter and Rasheed Sulaimon -- four of the teams top five scorers in 2015-16 -- are gone.Melo Trimble returns as a junior after opting to withdraw his name from the NBA draft. The 6-foot-3 guard hopes to improve on an inconsistent season in which he shot 41 percent and ended the season with a 5-for-16 dud against Kansas.He rarely played fewer than 35 minutes a game, and his body wore down in late February and March.I learned last year youve got to take care of your body, Trimble said. Thats what Im going to do this year.Trimble will be surrounded by a young cast. Center Damonte Dodd and forward L.C. Gill, a transfer from Duquesne, are the lone seniors on the roster.I have a lot of new players, a lot of good pieces, Turgeon said. Last year I had a veteran team. When you get into coaching, you like being around guys and teaching them and making them better.---Some other things to know about Marylands upcoming mens basketball season:HIS TEAM: As a freshman, Trimble stood behind Dez Wells when it came to taking the final shot. Last season, Trimble was asked to blend into a talent-laden squad. Now, he stands alone as the Terps main man. He knows its his team in a lot of ways, Turgeon said. Hes not worried about stepping on anybodys toes, maybe like he has in the last couple years. So it should be a greatt year for Melo.ddddddddddddWILEY RETURNS: After missing the entire 2015-16 season with a torn right meniscus, guard Dion Wiley is poised to make up for lost time in the backcourt. As a freshman, the 6-foot-4 guard played in all 35 games as a backup. Its taken a year, but now hes ready to build upon that season. Hes one of our better passers and better players in ball screens, Turgeon said. That says a lot when you have Melo on your team.SOMETHING TO PROVE: Freshman guard Anthony Cowan is listed at 6 feet, which might be a stretch. What he lacks in height, he makes up for in desire. Hes quick to the rim, but is focused now on playing well on the other end of the court. Coach Turgeon told me he wanted me to be a hound on defense, so thats what Im working on, Cowan said.LEAGUE OF ITS OWN: Turgeon started his tenure at Maryland when the Terrapins were part of the Atlantic Coast Conference. Now theyre in the Big Ten, but its all the same to him. It was really about making Maryland basketball great, no matter what league youre in, and getting players that fit your style of coaching, Turgeon said. I wasnt so worried about the ACC or the Big Ten. I was just trying to make my team the best team I could possibly make it.CEK-MATE: Junior forward Michal Cekovsky is quickly getting used to college basketball and life in in the U.S. A native of Slovakia, the 7-1 Cekovsky (pronounced Check-ov-skee) got one start last season but should see more playing time in the middle. Being with the guys every day and practicing with real good players has been good for my game, he said. Managers, coaches, teammates and friends have been helping me over the past three years.---More AP College Basketball: http://collegebasketball.ap.org ' ' '
