ids for the team and ultimately negotiate a deal

ATLANTA -- A hot-shooting night has the Atlanta Hawks back in sole possession of a playoff spot. Poor shooting cost the Cleveland Cavaliers in a game they desperately needed. Mike Scott ended a scoring slump with 26 points and the Hawks beat Cleveland 117-98 on Friday night in a costly setback for the Cavaliers late-season playoff push. Atlanta moved one game ahead of the New York Knicks, who lost to Washington 90-89, in the race for the eighth playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Hawks had lost seven of eight but recovered with strong games by Scott and Jeff Teague, who had 20 points and 12 assists. "All year and under a lot of difference circumstances weve said we like our group and theyre resilient," Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said. "They played with a lot of focus and effort and attention to detail and all the things we really talk about every night." Cavaliers coach Mike Brown was unhappy to see his team struggle with so much on the line. "They kicked our behind from the beginning to the end," Brown said. The Cavaliers lost an opportunity to move within a game of eighth place. Entering the game, Cleveland had won five of six but fell three games behind the Hawks with only five games remaining in the regular season. Brown was discouraged but stopped short of saying the Cavaliers couldnt recover from the loss. "No, it doesnt feel like its over but the loss is very, very disappointing," Brown said. "The way we lost it looked like we werent playing for much out there." Dion Waiters led Cleveland with 23 points. Spencer Hawes had 16 points and 10 rebounds and Kyrie Irving and Luol Deng each had 13 points. Scott made 12 of 13 shots from the field. The backup forward had a combined 16 points in his past four games. He topped that with 18 in the first half. "Finally," Scott said. "I was in a little shooting slump. I just kept being aggressive and kept getting extra shots and they finally fell." The Hawks set a season high with 39 first-quarter points, made 58.5 per cent of their shots from the field and never trailed. Atlanta led 39-23 after the first period. "The start that we got off to was something that was important," Budenholzer said. "Defensively, I thought we had a good first quarter. I think that kind of fueled our offence and our ball movement a little bit, taking care of the ball. That gave us the cushion that we were able to keep the rest of the game." The Hawks had 35 assists, three away from their season high. The Cavaliers made only 5 of 21 3-pointers and shot 39.6 per cent from the field overall while playing from behind the full game. "They jumped on us early," said Clevelands Jarrett Jack, who had nine points. "They dictated how this game was going to be played. We were playing an uphill battle all game." The Hawks had six 3-pointers in the big first quarter and 13 for the game. Atlanta committed nine turnovers in the second quarter, but Cleveland still outscored the Hawks only 26-22 in the period and trailed 61-49 at halftime. As Cleveland opened the second half going almost five minutes without a field goal, Teague took over for Atlanta. Teague had nine points in the third period, including three straight baskets and a driving layup to beat the buzzer at the end of the period. Teague added two 3-pointers in the last 3 minutes as the Cavaliers never mounted a serious challenge. Paul Millsap had 16 points, 11 rebounds and six assists for the Hawks. Lou Williams also had 16 points and six assists. NOTES: The Hawks completed a sweep of the three-game series. ... After missing one game with a sore right shoulder, Cavs C Anderson Varejao had nine points and five rebounds in 27 minutes. ... Irving played his second game after missing eight games with a torn bicep muscle. ... Hawes had 13 points in the third period. Marouane Fellaini Belgium Jersey . TSN Hockey Insider Bob McKenzie tweeted that its believed the Flames are working towards a new contract with the defenceman. Thomas Vermaelen Belgium Jersey . - The Pittsburgh Pirates plan on keeping promising left fielder Starling Marte playing alongside National League MVP Andrew McCutchen for years to come. http://www.soccerbelgiumteamonline.com/ . Louis Cardinals have agreed to a one-year contract. Romelu Lukaku Jersey . The 40-year-old midfielder was put in charge on Tuesday when David Moyes reign ended after 10 months with the defending champions in seventh place in the English Premier League. Thomas Meunier Belgium Jersey . -- Theres something about playing on Orlandos floor lately that seems to bring out the best in the Dallas Mavericks. LOS ANGELES -- Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling agreed Wednesday to sign off on selling the team he has owned for 33 years to former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer for $2 billion, bringing the possibility of a resolution to weeks of rumours, uncertainty and looming possibilities for legal action. The agreement hadnt been officially signed Wednesday afternoon, according to an individual with knowledge of the negotiations who wasnt authorized to discuss them publicly. But Donald Sterlings attorney, Maxwell Blecher, said he "has made an agreement with the NBA to resolve all their differences." Sterling gave his consent to a deal that was negotiated by his wife, Shelly Sterling, to sell the team, Blecher said. Representatives for Shelly Sterling and the NBA declined to comment. The agreement was an about face for Donald Sterling, who just last week filed a $1 billion suit against the NBA in federal court alleging the league violated his constitutional rights by relying on information from an "illegal" recording that publicized racist remarks he made to a girlfriend. It also said the league committed a breach of contract by fining Sterling $2.5 million and that it violated antitrust laws by trying to force a sale. Blecher said that as a result of the agreement, the federal suit will now be dismissed. Sterlings comments to V. Stiviano included telling her to not bring black people to Clippers games, specifically mentioning Hall of Famer Magic Johnson. They resulted in a storm of outrage from the public and players and even prompted President Barackk Obama to comment on what he called Sterlings "incredibly offensive racist statements.dddddddddddd" NBA Commissioner Adam Silver ultimately decided to ban Donald Sterling for life and began efforts to force Sterling to sell the team. For weeks, Donald Sterling said through his attorneys that he would fight the NBAs decisions to try to force his ouster as a team owner. But last week Shelly Sterling utilized her authority as sole trustee of The Sterling Family Trust, which owns the Clippers, to take bids for the team and ultimately negotiate a deal with Ballmer. Ballmer beat out bids by Guggenheim Partners and a group including former NBA All-Star Grant Hill. Ballmer made more than an hour-long personal visit to Shelly Sterlings Malibu home last week and laid out his plan. If the NBA owners approve the sale, it will be a record-high sum for a team that cost Donald Sterling about $12 million in 1981. Blechers co-counsel, Bobby Samini, said the vote by league owners is expected to take place in mid-July. This is not Ballmers first foray into potential NBA ownership. Ballmer and investor Chris Hansen headed a group that agreed to a deal to buy the Kings from the Maloof family in January 2013 with the intention of moving the team to Seattle, where the SuperSonics played until 2008. But Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson lobbied the NBA for time to put together a bid to keep the team in California, and though the Ballmer-Hansen group later increased its offer, owners voted to deny the bid for relocation and the Kings were sold to Vivek Ranadive. ' ' '