BRASILIA, Brazil -- Cristiano Ronaldos first goal of the World Cup earned Portugal a 2-1 win over Ghana but couldnt prevent his team being eliminated from the tournament along with the Africans on Thursday. Portugal finished level on four points with second-place United States in Group G but with an inferior goal difference. Germany topped the group after beating the U.S. 1-0 in Recife. Ronaldo slammed home the winner at Estadio Nacional with his left foot in the 80th minute to break his drought in Brazil and give Portugal its first win. He barely celebrated, though, with the goal coming too late to help Portugal qualify at the expense of the Americans. "We created many opportunities but we could not finish them," Ronaldo said. "We knew we had to score three goals and were depending on the result of the Germany game and we couldnt do that. "We deserved more, but thats football. We are leaving with our heads held high." Ghana captain Asamaoh Gyans 57th-minute header cancelled out an own goal scored by teammate John Boye in the 31st. It was a bittersweet ending to the World Cup for Ronaldo, who has been nursing a left leg injury and seen the likes of Brazil star Neymar and Argentina captain Lionel Messi upstage him with four goals apiece. The world player of the year earned the man-of-the-match award after a display that could easily have yielded three or four goals. Ronaldo struck the bar in the first half and had two great chances in injury time, but glanced a close-range finish over the bar and then shot straight at Fatawu Dauda when one on one with the goalkeeper. It was too little, too late from Ronaldo, who was downbeat as he trudged off the pitch after the final whistle. The result brought to an end a typically eventful few weeks in Brazil for the Ghanaians, who were part of thrilling games against the United States and Germany before their campaign ended in turmoil on and off the pitch. Their players took to the field in the Brazilian capital amid a dispute with the countrys football federation over alleged unpaid World Cup bonuses. Adding to the chaos, two of the teams star players -- Sulley Muntari and Kevin-Prince Boateng -- were booted out of the squad hours before Thursdays kickoff for disciplinary reasons. "I dont think it had an impact on the game," said Ghana coach Kwesi Appiah, who confirmed that his players received their appearance-fee payments before kickoff as requested. "We had our chances but couldnt take them." It was perhaps no surprise that Ghana delivered its most subdued display of the tournament, ensuring the team finished bottom of the group and resulting in Ronaldo getting time and space to enjoy his most lively performance in Brazil. He could have had a hat trick by the time he finally found the net. An over-hit cross in the fifth minute flew over Dauda and slammed against the bar before the Real Madrid superstar squandered a gilt-edged chance, heading straight at the keeper from six yards (meters) out. After having two stinging shots saved, he was bailed out by Boye, who sliced Miguel Velosos cross into the top corner of his own net to give the Portuguese a halftime lead they just about deserved. Gyan could hardly miss with a header after Kwadwo Asamaohs delicious cross with the outside of his left foot, making it 1-1. With Germany having just taken the lead in Recife, Ghana was only a goal away from progressing at that stage. However, Ronaldo had the final say, making no mistake from eight yards (meters) out after Dauda had parried the ball high into the air.
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. Costa Rica followed up its wins over Uruguay and Italy by holding England to a dour 0-0 draw on Tuesday, enough to finish first in Group D.
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.J. -- Jaromir Jagr has hit so many NHL milestones this season for the New Jersey Devils that he is starting to downplay them.
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.J. -- Pitcher Carl Pavano is retiring after 14 major league seasons.
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. The move will give Hentgen the "time needed to support his family and his fathers current health issues," the Blue Jays said in a release. Hentgen spent 10 of his 14 big-league seasons with the Blue Jays, winning a Cy Young Award in 1996.
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. 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. GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Floridas seniors, those four guys who fell just short of the Final Four the last three years, talked about cutting down the nets after clinching the Southeastern Conferences regular-season championship. It was a brief conversation. And a unanimous decision. The top-ranked Gators chose not to break out the scissors. If they keep playing like they did against LSU on Saturday, they might end up with an even bigger celebration. Dorian Finney-Smith scored 16 points, and Florida used a season-high 13 3-pointers to overwhelm the Tigers 79-61 and extend its school-record winning streak to 21 games. "Everybody on the team didnt feel comfortable cutting them down right now because we knew we have more of a journey to go," guard Casey Prather said. Prather and Michael Frazier II added 14 points apiece for the Gators, who also won their 31st straight at home. This one was never in doubt. Florida (27-2, 16-0 SEC) scored the first eight points of the game, opened up a double-digit lead with consecutive 3-pointers from DeVon Walker and Finney-Smith and put the game away early in the second half with a flurry of points in the paint. Prather made three consecutive driving finger rolls after the break. Patric Young had a dunk and then a left-handed hook shot. And Prather followed with a dunk and another driving layup that put Florida up 62-38 with about 11 minutes remaining. About the only thing left to see was whether Florida would cut down the nets. The Gators clinched the title Thursday night with Kentuckys loss to Arkansas, and many expected they would ceremoniously celebrate in front of a sellout crowd Saturday. It was never going to happen. Prather, Young and fellow seniors Scottie Wilbekin and Will Yeguete chose not to cut down the nets. "We felt it was given to us when Kentucky lost," Wilbekin said. "I was sitting on my couch watching TV. I didnt do anything." Coach Billy Donovan wouldnt have let them do it anyway, especially not with what happened in 2007. That team, the defending national champion led by Joakim Noah and Al Horford, cut down home nets after winning the SEC title and then lost its next two gamees.dddddddddddd. "I regret that," Donovan said. Although Donovan believes his senior-laden team can handle distractions, he figures its best to stay focused on the goals within reach. "You want to be playing well this time of year," Donovan said. "When you get to this point in time of the season, you dont want to play like youre trying to protect something, when youre back on your heels, We dont want to lose being No. 1 and we dont want to lose at home and we want to keep the streak going. "Once you get into trying to avoid things and trying to prevent things from happening, I think inevitably you get tight, you get frozen and you dont play. The biggest thing for us that Ive been trying to explain for our guys is there are things out there for us to chase. What are we going to chase? What are we going to go after?" Florida looked every bit like a championship-calibre team against LSU -- and in dominant fashion. The Gators had been in a number of nail-biters in recent weeks, winning their previous seven games by 10 points or less. They either trailed or were tied at halftime in each of those. This one was the complete opposite. The Gators never trailed. They led 41-25 at halftime and didnt even have a second-half lull. "It says a lot about the team," LSU coach Johnny Jones said. "They sit there and theyve already clinched the championship and for guys to come out and play as motivated and as hard as they did tonight. ... I think when you have a senior team like they are and guys are able to make plays like that and are used to winning, some great things can happen for you." Johnny OBryant III led the Tigers (17-11, 8-8) with 18 points. Jordan Mickey added 14 points and 10 rebounds for LSU, which lost its seventh straight on the road. There was little LSU could do to stop Florida, which just got hot from the 3-point line. The Gators made 13 of 23 from behind the arc. It was just the fourth time this season that they reached double digits in 3s. "I was happy our guys shot the ball with confidence and it was good to see the ball go in the basket for those guys," Donovan said. ' ' '
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