w I can get him back in. He has an incredible ability to come off the bench and impact right away, McCaffery said.UP NEXTIowa: Hosts North Dakota on Tuesday a | Forum

Phil Taylor is relishing his Premier League clash with Gary Anderson after admitting he received a kick up the backside. Brad Marchand Jersey .The six-time champion started his campaign with a lacklustre defeat against the Dutchman, but averaged 111 in a vintage 7-1 win over James Wade on night two of the competition in Newcastle.Taylor will next face defending champion Anderson on Thursday night in Dublin, live on Sky Sports, and believes he is firmly back on track after being stung into life by the Van Barneveld loss. The defeat against Raymond was a kick up the backside that I needed, but last week was a fantastic result for me and I want to keep pushing forward now, said Taylor.Its going to be brilliant and Gary will be ready for it. Ive been doing everything right and its just a matter of getting up there and doing it on the dartboard.Now that Im playing properly and Ive got my equipment right, I cant wait and Im really looking forward to it.Michael van Gerwen also ended with a 111 average after last weeks dazzling 7-3 win over Anderson and takes on Adrian Lewis, the early league leader, at the 3Arena. Michael van Gerwen hopes to display his ice-cool finishing in Dublin The world No 1 had a 70 per cent success rate on the doubles against Anderson and plans to ruthlessly punish any lapses of concentration from Lewis. The crowds in Dublin are great and I really like to play there, said Van Gerwen. It will be a good game and I hope I can continue my form because my confidence is high at the moment and I know what I can do.Adrian is a fantastic talent but sometimes he can let his focus go a little bit and then you need to take advantage, and thats what Ill be looking to do. Hopefully well both have won two out of three by the end of the night!But Lewis is in confident mood after adding his second win of the competition against Dave Chisnall. Michael has been the best player in the world for the last couple of years in my opinion, said Lewis. It means everything when you play him and Im looking forward to it. Lewis leads by example Adrian Lewis showing promise in Premier League I cant ask for any more with my form and that showed in patches last week. Im feeling good and if somebody beats me then theyre going to have to play really well.Watch night three of the Premier League on Sky Sports 1, starting at 7pm. Or watch for £6.99 without a contract, on NOW TV.Also See:Mardles predictionsLewis leads by exampleThursday at the dartsThornton returns in Dublin Ray Bourque Jersey . -- Damian Lillard and LaMarcus Alrdridge were again the go-to duo for the Trail Blazers against the Kings. Steven Kampfer Bruins Jersey . John Lucas, signed as a mentor for rookie Trey Burke, showed he can score if required, scoring 12 points of his 16 points in the second quarter as Utah built an 18-point lead. http://www.thebostonbruinshockey.com/...oates-hockey-jersey/ . SIMONS ISLAND, Ga.DES MOINES, Iowa -- Iowa, left for dead just two weeks ago, has found some life by figuring out to how play defense.Peter Jok scored 21 points in his final game in his hometown and the Hawkeyes thumped rival Northern Iowa 69-46 Saturday for its third straight win.Nicholas Baer had 11 points with 11 rebounds off the bench for the Hawkeyes (6-5), who jumped all over the slightly favored Panthers early and never let up. Iowa led 34-16 at halftime after a 16-3 run, and it pushed that lead to as much as 27 early in the second half.The win was Iowas biggest over Northern Iowa (5-5) since it beat the Panthers by 32 in 2000 -- long before the Panthers improved so much that Iowa and Iowa State scrapped their home-and-home series with them for an annual doubleheader on a neutral floor.I just feel like we bought into (defense), Jok said. We just keep talking and our chemistry has been good.Jeremy Morgan scored 14 points and added nine rebounds for Northern Iowa, which shot just 27 percent. Morgan was 4 of 13 from the floor.When those shots arent falling, weve got to have a different level of toughness, Morgan said.BIG PICTUREIowa: Iowa again looked nothing like the team that lost to Nebraska-Omaha 98-89 on Dec. 3. It harassed Northern Iowas shooters out of their comfort zone, clogged up passing lanes and turned many of UNIs bricks into transition opportunities -- which isnt what the Panthers want to do. If Iowa can continue to play like it has the last three games while incorporating talented freshman Tyler Cook back into the lineup, the impending Big Ten season wont look so foreboding.Northern Iowa: Granted, Iowas defense had a lot to do with it, but the Panthers ttook some awful shots early, and the Hawkeyes put them in a hole they couldnt dig out of. Kevan Miller Jersey. Northern Iowa missed the shots it should have missed and many of the ones it shouldnt have. The Panthers will almost certainly have to win the Missouri Valley tournament to return to the NCAA Tournament.THE NUMBERSIowa freshman Cordell Pemsl continued his torrid shooting stretch, hitting all four of his shots. He had 10 points and five rebounds in 18 minutes. ... Iowa owned the boards as well, with a 43-29 advantage. ... Spencer Haldeman had 12 points and Wyatt Lohaus scored 10 for Northern Iowa. ... The Hawkeyes got 34 points from their bench. ... This was Northern Iowas second game scoring fewer than 50 points. Xavier beat the Panthers 64-42 last month.INJURY UPDATECook (broken finger) might play in Tuesdays game against North Dakota. He is averaging 13.7 points and 5.3 rebounds. McCaffery will need to find ways to use Cook without disrupting his teams momentum moving forward.HE SAID ITBaer is just such a special player. Every time hes on the bench Im thinking of how I can get him back in. He has an incredible ability to come off the bench and impact right away, McCaffery said.UP NEXTIowa: Hosts North Dakota on Tuesday and Delaware State two days later to close out nonconference play.Northern Iowa: Has a big one on Wednesday at No. 7 North Carolina. Dont expect the Tar Heels to overlook the Panthers after losing to them as the top-ranked team in the country last season.---More college basketball at www.collegebasketball.ap.org ' ' '