. Both stone horses are kept in the University of Pennsylvanias museum in the US. Our work is to repair the stone relics, which were broken into pieces in the course of being smuggled abroad, Zhou Ping, one of the relics-repair experts from the Xian Heritage Restoration Center, told China Daily in a telephone interview before boarding the airplane in Shanghai on Friday. Victor Cruz Jersey VANCOUVER - The best Vancouver Canuck playoff run in years has not always been a happy time for defenceman Keith Ballard. Randall Cobb Youth Jersey . Ballard has done more watching than playing for the Canucks this spring. That has forced the former first-round draft pick to put the team first while swallowing his pride. Its tough when you come into the locker room after a game, a big win, Ballard said prior to the Canucks playing the San Jose Sharks in Game 5 of the NHL Western Conference final Tuesday. You are in a suit. Everybody else, you have seen the commitment they have shown on the ice. You, as a player, want so bad to be out there with them and be part of that. Its definitely hard. Heading into Tuesday, a healthy Ballard had dressed for just eight of the Canucks 17 playoffs games. He has no points while averaging 12:58 of ice time. Ballard has managed to keep his personal disappointment under wraps as the Canucks get closer to appearing in the Stanley Cup final for the first time in 17 years. You have to be a good teammate, said the soft-spoken, 28-year-old from Baudette, Min. You cant walk around with a bad attitude or be upset or pout. We are all pulling for the same thing. I am as happy as the next guy for when the guys who are playing do a great job. When we win, thats part of being a team. Canuck coach Alain Vigneault praised Ballards character. Hes like the rest of the group, he wants to win, said Vigneault. Im sure hed like to play on a nightly basis. But given circumstances, he hasnt. Hes put the team ahead of himself and made sure that he stayed positive around his teammates. Thats what we expect of him. In that situation, thats what hes given us. Now we need him to play and he played well. Ballard played for the first time in seven games when he dressed for Sundays 4-2 win over the Sharks in San Jose. He was given the chance after Christian Ehrhoff and Aaron Rome both were hurt by checks from San Joses Jamie McGinn in Game 3. Paired with rookie Chris Tanev, Ballard had 10:34 of ice time, finished the night at minus-1, and sent McGinn cartwheeling through the air with a hip check that made several highlight reels. I knew the whole way who it was, said Ballard. Hes a guy who comes hard, so I had to slow him down somehow. Overall, Ballard was happy with the game. We were solid, he said. It was probably what they wanted out of us. We got the puck up to the forwards as soon as possible. This is Ballards sixth NHL season, but his first time in the playoffs. He spent three seasons with the Phoenix Coyotes and two with the Florida Panthers. The Canucks acquired Ballard and Victor Oreskovich last June in a trade that sent Steve Bernier, Michael Grabner and a first-round draft pick to Florida. Ballard, who came to Vancouver under contract for the next five seasons at US$4.2 million a year, underwent hip surgery in the offseason. He was a healthy scratch for four games in November, plus missed matches due to a concussion in October and a knee injury in February. In 65 regular season games he had two goals, seven points, and led the team with 111 blocked shots. By not playing Ballard in the playoffs, Vigneault has made it clear there is something lacking in the defencemans game. Ballard said on a team deep on defenceman, he has to be patient. We have six defenceman who have all been that 25-minute a game guy, he said. My role was less on this team. For me, I want to contribute in some way or the other. Not everyone can play 25 minutes. Not everybody is on the power play or the penalty kill. You have to buy into your role and buy into what ever role that is. The Canucks will have to make some decisions on defence over the summer. Sami Salo is 36 years old, while both Kevin Bieksa and Ehrhoff become unrestricted free agents. What ever happens, Ballard said he has learned a lot about himself during the playoffs. If you dont learn something going through this, you are doing something wrong, he said with a smile. Adversity tests you the most. Its easy to be upbeat and positive when everything is going well. You have to able to handle the adversity. You look at anybodys career, over some period of time there is bumps in the road. Thats all it is. Josh Morgan Jersey . For the 2008-2008 NBA season, Im looking at ten teams that I think have some value. Lets start on the positive side of things. The number one team in my preseason NBA Power Rankings, the Los Angeles Lakers, is the high team on the board at 54. Mark Ingram Jersey Youth . - The San Francisco 49ers re-signed fullback Moran Norris to a three-year contract Monday, welcoming back the burly run-blocker after releasing him last summer. Ahmad Bradshaw Jersey . Malik Story added 15 points for Nevada (11-15), which got 11 rebounds from Olek Czyz. Patrick Rembert netted 13 points in defeat for UC Irvine (11-17), which got 11 points apiece from Daman Starring and Derrick Strings. Jimmy Graham Womens Jersey . A dispute over mining rights turned into a mob fight on November 18 in Yunnans Luxi County. About 120 people, wielding steel pipes and knives, were ambushed near Xiaosongdi coal mine as their opponents set off explosives and opened fire with guns. Authentic Frank Gore Jersey . The Canucks have staked themselves to a six-point lead over the Avalanche for first place in the Northwest thanks in large part to Vancouvers stellar play since the end of November. Alain Vigneaults club is 13-1-2 over its last 16 games and the Canucks have gone without a regulation loss in 11 straight contests (9-0-2).STOCKHOLM - The Davis Cup match between Sweden and Israel will go ahead as planned - without spectators in the southern city of Malmo - after an attempt to move the venue to Stockholm fell through. Swedish organizers on Tuesday cited security concerns for the closed-door policy because anti-Israeli demonstrations are expected during the best-of-five series on March 6-8. But the volley of words between the two Swedish cities, which comes after the United Arab Emirates stopped an Israeli player from a tennis tournament in Dubai, has an unmistakable political dimension. Malmo, Swedens third-largest city, has a left-leaning local government and a large Muslim minority. Its leaders have strongly criticized Israel after the Gaza invasion, and some have called for dropping the Davis Cup match altogether. Stockholm has a centre-right majority that is more pro-Israeli. The Swedish capital offered Monday to step in as an alternative venue, saying it was better prepared to guarantee security for the match. However, the plan was cancelled when Stockholm officials realized they wouldnt be able to get organized in time for the Israeli teams Sunday arrival, said Madeleine Sjostedt, Stockholms vice-mayor in charge of culture and sports. "Im very disappointed. We worked intensely with this for a few days but had to give up," she said, adding that Malmos decision was political. "Its regrettable that Malmo doesnt engage in discussion with those who threaten with violence." Malmo Mayor Ilmar Reepalu insisted the decision to bar spectators was solely based on security concerns. He noted that pro-Palestinian groups had disrupted a recent pro-Israel demonstration by throwing bottles, eggs and fireworks. "It shows the tensions that exisst after the conflict in Gaza," Reepalu, of the left-leaning Social Democrats, told The Associated Press by telephone. Authentic Patrick Willis Jersey. The Davis Cup match isnt the first sports event marred by political protests against Israel. Israeli player Shahar Peer was denied a visa last week to play in the Dubai Tennis Championships, prompting the WTA to fine organizers a record $300,000. At the time, organizers said they feared fan anger over Israels recent military offensive in Gaza would spill into riots if Peer were to play. The United Arab Emirates later granted a permit to Israeli player Andy Ram to compete in this weeks mens tournament. In January, an Israeli basketball team fled to the changing room as hundreds of fist-pounding Turkish fans protested the violence in Gaza. A pro-Islamic group earlier set an Israeli flag on fire outside the arena. The Israeli Tennis Federation lamented that the Malmo match would be played behind closed doors. "Its terrible that they are trying to mix politics with sports, especially in an enlightened country like Sweden," federation chairman Michael Klein said last week. On Tuesday, Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor said it was up to local authorities to decide on the security arrangements for the match. "If local authorities decide to prevent spectators from attending, what can I say?" Palmor said. "We leave it to local security authorities to do what they think is best." This will be the second time a Davis Cup match will be played in an empty arena in Sweden. In 1975, two years after a military coup led by Augusto Pinochet against the elected Chilean government of Salvador Allende, Sweden played Chile in Bastad and no spectators were allowed. ' ' '

. -- Free agent safety O. Victor Cruz JerseyLos Angeles, CA (Sports Network) - Andre Ethier continued his early run at the triple crown, going 2-for-4 with two RBI to pace the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 6-5 win over the Colorado Rockies in the first of a three-game set. Alex Smith Jersey . Ethier is batting .376 with 32 RBI to lead the Dodgers, who have won two straight and five of seven. Matt Kemp tripled in the game-winning run in the sixth. Hiroki Kuroda surrendered five runs -- four earned -- on nine hits in 5 1/3 innings. Jeff Weaver (1-1) picked up his 100th career win after getting the final out in the sixth. Jonathan Broxton earned his second save of the season. "We fought hard," said Dodgers manager Joe Torre. "This was great. Kuroda wasnt at his best. To battle back was big for us. We competed tonight." Carlos Gonzalez went 2-for-4 with two RBI for the Rockies, who have dropped two of three. Esmil Rogers was knocked around for five runs -- four earned -- on seven hits in 4 2/3 frames. Matt Daley (0-1) was saddled with the loss after allowing the go-ahead run in the sixth. "Tonights game was a game of misfortune," said Rockies manager Jim Tracy. "We created some trouble for ourselves. We had a lot of two-out opportunities, but we hit some balls right at people." Ian Stewarts sacrifice fly in the second gave the Rockies a 1-0 lead. Troy Tulowitzki scored on the play after leading off with a walk, stealing second and moving to third on Gonzalezs groundout. Jamey Carrolls two-out RBI single tied the game in the home half of the frame, as Casey Blake came around to score after starting the frame with a double. The Dodgers then took a one-run lead in the third as Ethier singled home Kemp with one down. Ethier reached on Stewarts throwing error. Tulowitzki started the fourth with a double off the wall in left, and came around to score to tie the game on Gonzalezs bloop single. In the fifth, Seth Smith and Dexter Fowler led off with singles, and Tulowitzki walked with one out. Gonzalez then drilled a deep sac fly to left, giving the Rockies a 3-2 lead. The Dodgers quickly tied the game in the bottom of the fifth. Xavier Paul led off with a double to right-center, and Ethier drove him in with a one-out double to right. Ethier then scored the go-ahead run with two down as Blake drove a liner right off the top of second baseman Clint Barmes glove into the outfield. After Blake advanced to second on a wild pitch, Russell Martin drove him in with a single to right. Eric Young Jr. nailed a pinch-hit triple with one down in the sixth and scored on Smiths single to left-center. Fowler singled and advanced, along with Smith, on Kurodas overthrow to first. George Sherrill then entered and surrendered a Todd Helton sac fly, which tied the game at five. The back-and-forth battle continued into the bottom half of the inning. Carroll doubled off Daley to start and moved to second on pinch-hitter Reed Johnsons sac bunt. After Paul struck out, Kemp tripled to right-center to give the Dodgers a 6-5 advantage. Gonzalez singled against Broxton to start the ninth, but was then caught stealing. Broxton struck out the next two batters. Game Notes Los Angeles owned Colorado last season to the tune of a 14-4 record, including victories in seven of nine games held in Hollywood. The Dodgers have also won six of the last seven encounters in this series...Weaver was activated from the 15-day disabled list prior to the game. To make room on the roster, the club optioned rookie pitcher John Ely back to Triple-A Albuquerque...The Rockies finished 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position and stranded 11...Smith went 2-for-5...James Loney went 0-for-4 on his 26th birthday.   James Starks Jersey . The 74-year-old has worked hard to foster the importance of the memorial center, which once housed the Penang Philomatic Union. The union, which was founded by Sun in Penang in 1908, served in the past as a cover for Suns revolutionary activities. Today, the building is home to the non-governmental organization that aims to educate. Clay Matthews Womens Jersey . The Pirates tied the 1963 New York Mets mark for the worst road record (17-64). According to a report in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, manager John Russell is set be fired with an announcement expected next week. However, general manager Neal Huntington will apparently be retained. Justin Smith Jersey . Lilly (11-6) gave up six hits and three walks while fanning five to pick up the win and Reed Johnson chipped in with a 3-for-4 day with two runs scored for Chicago, which dropped the first game of this series after winning five straight. Aaron Rodgers Jersey . Petersburg, FL (Sports Network) - Carlos Pena drew a game-ending, bases-loaded walk in the bottom of the 10th inning, as the Tampa Bay Rays rallied past the Detroit Tigers, 6-5, to complete a three-game sweep at Tropicana Field. Authentic Eli Manning Jersey . Al Jefferson scored 27 points and Raja Bell had two crucial jumpers and a steal in overtime to help the Utah Jazz hold off the Sacramento Kings 109-102 Saturday night to stop their home losing streak at seven games.East Rutherford, NJ (Sports Network) - New York Giants weakside linebacker Michael Boley on Wednesday underwent arthroscopic surgery to repair a torn labrum in his hip. The procedure was performed by team physician Dr. Bryan Kelly at the Hospital for Special Surgery, and a full recovery is expecteed in 8-10 weeks. Darren Sproles Youth Jersey. The 6-foot-3, 236-pound Boley, who signed with the G-Men as a free agent on February 28 after four years with the Atlanta Falcons, has recorded six sacks, six forced fumbles, five interceptions and four fumble recoveries in 64 games -- 52 starts.   ' ' '