SAO PAULO, Brazil -- Neymar showed why he is carrying Brazils hopes at the World Cup, scoring twice on Thursday to help the underwhelming hosts escape a disappointing start to the tournament. [url=http://www.nbakingsonline.com/Authentic-Oscar-Robertson-Kings-Jerse y/]Oscar Robertson Jersey[/url] . Wit

SAO PAULO, Brazil -- Neymar showed why he is carrying Brazils hopes at the World Cup, scoring twice on Thursday to help the underwhelming hosts escape a disappointing start to the tournament. Oscar Robertson Jersey . With Brazil struggling and down a goal against a spirited Croatian team, Neymar came through to lead his team to a 3-1 win in the opening match, scoring once in each half. The killer goal to make the score 2-1 was a hotly contested penalty awarded by Japanese referee Yuichi Nishimura. "Things werent going well," he said. "The first match is always difficult, we were anxious, we were nervous. Im glad I was able to get the goals we needed at the time we needed them." "He is a special player and we know that," Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari said. "And he needs to know that we know that." Brazil got off to a slow start in its home tournament. Defender Marcelo found his own net while trying to clear a low cross by Ivica Olic in the 11th minute, stunning the crowd of more than 62,100 packing the Itaquerao Stadium. But Neymar equalized in the 29th, firing a perfectly placed low shot that went in off the post. He said he didnt hit the ball perfectly, "but it went in, its all that matters." "Its important to start these tournaments on the right foot, with a victory," said Neymar. "Im happy that I got to score, but the entire team deserves credit. We maintained our calm and showed we could battle back." The game turned on a controversial penalty awarded by Nishimura in the second half after striker Fred went down inside the area under minimal contact from defender Dejan Lovren. Neymar scored from the spot in the 71st minute, getting his 33rd goal with Brazil. Croatia goalkeeper Stipe Pletikosa nearly saved Neymars shot, but it was struck hard enough to deflect into the net. The Croatians were furious. "If that was a penalty, we should be playing basketball. Those kinds of fouls are penalized there," Croatia coach Niko Kovac said. "That is shameful, this is not a World Cup referee. He had one kind of criteria for them and another for us. The rules were not the same," Kovac said. As Croatia searched desperately for an equalizer, Oscar added to the lead in the first minute of injury time with a toe poke from just outside the penalty area. A draw would have been a huge disappointment for Brazil, which had won its opening match the last eight times and is overwhelming favourite to win the competition. "The team didnt give up," Brazil defender David Luiz said "We knew it would be hard but we played well and got that first goal and then the victory." The tournament finally got underway as planned after months of talk about the preparation problems that plagued Brazil since it was picked as host seven years ago. The troubled Itaquerao, which wasnt fully finished for the opener, held up without major setbacks to fans or the match itself, although part of the lights atop the pitch went out a few times for brief periods in the first half. ------ Lineups: Brazil: Julio Cesar, Dani Alves, Thiago Silva, David Luiz, Marcelo, Luiz Gustavo, Paulinho (Hernanes, 63), Oscar, Neymar (Ramires, 88), Hulk (Bernard, 68), Fred. Croatia: Stipe Pletikosa, Sime Vrsaljko, Darijo Srna, Dejan Lovren, Vedran Corluka, Ivan Rakitic, Nikica Jelavic (Ante Rebic, 78), Luka Modric, Ivan Perisic, Ivica Olic, Mateo Kovacic (Marcelo Brozovic, 61). Jason Williams Jersey . On Monday night, many fans in this city placed the blame squarely on the captain for his role in the James Neal overtime winner against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Marvin Bagley III Kings Jersey . CEO Steve Koonin on Tuesday told the Hawks flagship radio station that he made the decision to discipline Ferry but allowed him to keep his job managing the team. He did not say what the punishment was, but noted that he relied on a law firms three-month investigation of Ferry and him describing Deng as someone who has a little African in him. http://www.nbakingsonline.com/Authentic-DeAaron-Fox-Kings-Jersey/ . Los Angeles announced its new deal for Kupchak late in the fourth quarter of a 145-130 loss to the Houston Rockets. Kupchak had one year left on his current contract.MONTREAL -- If the fans had their wish, Caroline Wozniacki would be facing local favourite Eugenie Bouchard in the third round of the US$2.44 million womens Rogers Cup on Thursday. Instead, the former world No. 1 from Denmark will play Shelby Rogers, the American qualifier who put a quick end to Westmount, Que., native Bouchards homecoming tournament in the second round. Wozniacki breezed through a second match in a row with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Klara Koukalova on a side court on Wednesday. She has lost only five games in two matches so far at the hardcourt event. "Its my favourite surface," she said. "Ive been playing pretty well lately. "Montreal has always been a good place for me, winning here a few years ago (2010). Im feeling good and hopefully I can keep going." In the evening feature, world No. 1 Serena Williams dispatched Samantha Stosur 6-0, 6-2 in a match interrupted 28 minutes by a sprinkle of rain. Williams, the defending champion who is coming off a victory Sunday at Stanford, then surprised the centre court crowd by doing a courtside interview in French. Wozniacki is coming off her first win of the season at the Istanbul Cup, where she dropped only two games while beating Roberta Vinci in the final. Now ranked 13th, Wozniacki will face the world No. 113 in Rogers, who played the spoiler as Bouchard battled rust and her nerves on Tuesday night. "I know how she looks like, but I dont know much about her game," said Wozniacki. "I will definitely have my team tell me how she plays." It promises to be a quieter match than if it was Bouchard, who had the packed centre court solidly behind her, as well as her Genie Army fan group in from Australia. "I dont really care, to be honest," added Wozniacki. "Obviously, Rogers must have played really well to beat Genie. "With the whole crowd, as well, for Genie, you know it wasnt easy. But for me, its a new match. It doesnt matter whos on the other side." If she keeps winning, it may draw attention back to her tennis game and away from her famous split in May with golfer Rory McIlroy. Both players seem to be doing better since then, with McIlroy following his British Open title with a win at last weeks Bridgestone Invitational. "Ive moved on. I hope everyone else has moved on, too," said Wozniacki, who will be running the New York Marathon in November, when the wedding was to have been. Williams needed only 59 minutes of playing time to improve her career record against Stosur to 7-3. Mike Bibby Jersey. Next she will face 15th-seeded Lucie Safarova, against whom she is 6-0. Safarova beat Magdalena Rybarikova 6-4, 6-2. "She is an interesting player," Williams said of Safarova. "Shes extremely tricky. "Weve had some tough matches. I know weve gone to three sets on occasions. Its definitely not an easy match for me." Williams has won the Rogers Cup three times when it is held on alternate years in Toronto, including last year, but she has not played in Montreal since she retired from the final with an injury in 2000. Odd, since shed be a natural favourite for the mostly French-speaking crowd. "Im really happy to be a part of the tournament this year. Its just really cool," she said. "Ive actually been studying French for most of my life, so yeah, I should be able to speak even better, to be honest. "I love it in Canada because I understand everything. Its a lot easier for me to speak. The accent is much easier for me to understand." In a centre court match, fourth-seeded Maria Sharapova survived a rough first set to down world No. 27 Garbine Muguruza of Venezuela 4-6, 6-3, 6-1. "I was happy that I was able to turn it around," said Sharapova. "I didnt feel good. "I made a lot of errors in the first set. When youre able to finish stronger than your start, thats always a positive because you give yourself an opportunity to keep playing in the tournament." Her next opponent is 14th seeded Carla Suarez Navarro, who got past lucky loser Karolina Pliskova 6-1, 3-6, 6-3. British qualifier Heather Watson upset 10th-seeded Dominika Cibulkova 6-2, 6-7 (3), 7-6 (5). Watson let a 5-2 lead slip away in the third set before rallying for the victory. The 22-year-old will face eighth-seeded Victoria Azarenka in the third round on Thursday. Watson won two qualifying matches on the weekend before downing Tereza Smitkova in the first round. Cibulkova was coming off a first-round win over 17-year-old Francoise Abanda of Montreal. Angelique Kerber, the sixth seed, ousted Caroline Garcia 6-4, 6-1. The two faced one another in Madrid in May, with Garcia winning when Kerber retired in the second set with a back injury. Second seed Petra Kvitova downed Casey Dellacqua 6-3, 6-2 and American qualifier Coco Vandeweghe upset ninth seed Ana Ivanovic 6-7 (7), 7-6 (7), 6-4 in the late matches. In doubles, Muguruza and Saurez Navarro beat Abanda and Stephanie Dubois of Laval, Que., 6-3, 6-4. ' ' '