DURHAM, N.C. -- Duke quarterback Thomas Sirk has made it back for the start of preseason camp nearly six months after he ruptured his left Achilles tendon during an offseason conditioning workout.Sirk will take part in the Blue Devils first practice on Monday night, Coach David Cutcliffe said, but it will be in a limited role.While the teams medical staff has declared Sirk 100 percent ready and Cutcliffe says his quarterback feels great, he added theres a little bit of a mystery. So, the coaching staff is putting Sirk on a pitch count, not just on throws but on how much weve fatigued him and the plan is to let him work through his position drills and 7-on-7 passing workouts, among other drills.Cutcliffe said he will have a clearer picture of Sirks status a week and a half into this thing and see where he really is.Sirk is a redshirt senior who in his first season as the Blue Devils starter led them to their first bowl victory since 1961. He was the co-MVP of the overtime Pinstripe Bowl win over Indiana after rushing for two touchdowns and throwing for another. Last season, he passed for 2,625 yards with 16 TDs and led the team in rushing with 803 yards and eight scores.Sirk was hurt Feb. 9 while running a 10-yard sprint with some teammates. He heard a pop in his left heel and immediately recognized the sound -- the same one he heard in his other heel in April 2013, when he ruptured his right Achilles tendon and was lost for that season.I thought I was going to see a totally crumbled youngster, Cutcliffe said. I saw a determined young man with great spirit and great attitude. ... I celebrate that every day.Sirk missed spring practice but set a goal of returning for the start of fall camp, and he is listed atop the preseason depth chart in the teams media guide. Duke opens the season Sept. 3 against North Carolina Central.Sirk has been working with the Blue Devils receivers all spring and summer, keeping his throwing arm and mental skills sharp while his heel heals.Hes not favoring any leg. Hes giving it all on his messed-up leg, as you would say, and he looks fluid to me, receiver Anthony Nash said. Hes not passive, hes not timid. Thats the main thing for him, just keeping that confidence.---Follow Joedy McCreary at http://twitter.com/joedyap. His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/joedy-mccreary Cheap Ultra Boost Uk . Traditional contenders Brazil, Greece and Turkey drew the other three spots to complete the 24-team field for this summers tournament in Spain, basketball governing body FIBA announced Saturday at its meeting in Barcelona. Wholesale Ultra Boost . The No. 1-ranked Nadal tweaked his back warming up for the Australian Open final, which he lost almost four weeks ago in a major upset against Stanislas Wawrinka. 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The Portland Trail Blazers seem determined to improve their defensive performance, beginning Wednesday night with a home date against the Indiana Pacers.On Monday, 12 hours after a 130-114 drubbing by the Houston Rockets, the Trail Blazers began to lay the foundation with a video session and a spirited practice focused on defense.This is the first time weve had a real practice in what seems like forever, point guard Damian Lillard said. It was good for us to try to sharpen up, (to have) coaches challenge us.Its to the point now where our pride has to kick in. We have to show how much we actually care about ... being better defensively.The Rockets scorched the Blazers with 56.1 percent shooting, including 47.2 percent (17 for 36) from 3-point range. Portland owns the worst defensive efficiency rating in the NBA (109.80) and is giving up more points (113.7) than any team in the league other than Brooklyn (114.0).The Blazers (9-10) are tired of talking about getting better at the defensive end.We keep preaching it, but its getting old, guard Allen Crabbe said. At some point, it has to click. We keep telling ourselves we have to get better, but at some point, we have to get it going.The Blazers are one of the better offensive teams in the NBA, but they have trouble stopping anybody. Cleveland blitzed them for 137 points, Golden State for 127, Houston for 126 and 130, even Phoenix for 121.We scored 125 points against Cleveland, Lillard said. Thats a lot of points to score and not win a game. Right now, were not getting it done on the defensive end. Thats what it comes down to.Were going to put points on the board, but we have to find a way to get better at coming up with more stops. If (an opponents) execution gets harder, the (shooting) percenntage is going to go down.dddddddddddd We have to make them more uncomfortable more consistently.Indiana, meanwhile, begins a five-game road trip coming off impressive back-to-back routs at home of the Brooklyn Nets (118-97) and the Los Angeles Clippers (91-70). The wins were achieved without the services of star forward Paul George, who has missed six of the past seven games -- and will also sit out Wednesdays contest -- with ankle and back injuries.The Pacers also emphasize defense, led by point guard Jeff Teague, who ranks fourth in the NBA in steals at 2.11 per game.I have to be aggressive defensively and do my best to ignite and get guys going by pressuring the ball, Teague told the media. Everything else will take care of itself. (The last two games) were moving the ball better, guys are making shots and guys are playing with confidence.Coach Nate McMillan is striving for consistency in both effort and performance.We talked about not taking steps back, McMillan said. Weve played some good games, and then you cant recognize the team the next game. We need to build some momentum at this point in the season.McMillan has been impressed with the work of 20-year-old center Myles Turner, who averaged 16.5 points, 10 rebounds and 2.5 blocked shots the last two games going up against Brook Lopez and DeAndre Jordan.Hey, welcome to the center position in the NBA: (Atlantas) Dwight Howard to Brook to Jordan the last three games, McMillan said. Theyre big, powerful guys. (Turner) is still developing and growing into that position, defending the basket. Hes working. Thats the one thing he brings to the floor every night. ' ' '
