The Original Game » Visit Washington on Monday.76ers: Host

ROME -- In terms of salaries, Atalanta ranks 15th in Serie A. Jimmy Butler Jersey . On the field, however, its been a different story for the provincial club, which has relied on homegrown talent to become the best team in the Italian league over the last seven rounds.After gaining 19 out of a possible 21 points since Sept. 26, Atalanta has rocketed up the standings to fifth place to make qualifying for Europe a distinct possibility.The Bergamo squad has won four straight and achieved three consecutive clean sheets in which it has outscored the opposition 7-0.Were on a fantastic streak but the most important thing has been the way weve been playing and that the squad and players have been improving continuously, Atalanta coach Gian Piero Gasperini said.Gasperinis job was at risk when Atalanta lost four of its five opening matches, but club president Antonio Percassis faith in the coach has proved decisive.Atalanta features nine homegrown players on its first team -- the most in Serie A -- and regularly uses them.Players like 22-year-old defenders Mattia Caldara and Andrea Conti, 21-year-old striker Andrea Petagna -- all members of Italys under-21 squad -- and 22-year-old midfielder Roberto Gagliardini, who was given his first call up to Italys senior national team this month after only nine Serie A appearances, are in the team.Then theres 19-year-old Ivory Coast midfielder Franck Kessie, who first spent time on the youth squad after arriving in January 2015. He leads the team with four goals this season.Its a matter of pride for us and for the club, Gagliardini said of the widespread use of homegrown players.Added Caldara: Were friends before were teammates.The youth movement was on full display in Atalantas last match, a 3-0 win at Sassuolo in which Caldara and Conti scored and Gagliardini provided the assist for the opening goal by Alejandro Papu Gomez.The victory over Sassuolo was significant because it gave Atalanta bragging rights as the leagues top provincial squad.Sassuolo set a club record by finishing sixth last season to qualify for the Europa League, an achievement Atalanta would like to emulate.In its 109-year history, Atalanta has spent 56 seasons in Serie A -- more than any other club which has never won the top division.Its only major trophy was the 1963 Italian Cup, besides six Serie B titles. Atalanta also reached the Cup Winners Cup semifinals in 1988 while competing in Serie B -- one of the best performances by a non-first division club in a major UEFA competition.The club has also had its troubles, getting docked six points in 2011-12 for a widespread betting and match-fixing scandal that ended the career of club captain Cristiano Doni, who was arrested.Atalanta was also docked two points the following season but it managed to avoid relegation from Serie A on both occasions.With a population of 120,000, Bergamo is a mid-sized city that is considered part of the wider Milan metropolitan area, which made a 2-1 win over Inter Milan last month especially sweet.Gasperini, in his first season at Atalanta, was hardly given a chance at Inter, where he was fired after five winless matches in September 2011.Bergamo attracts many Milan residents for its airport that is home to low-cost airlines and the club is also a relatively low-cost affair.Atalanta, which pays its players a total of 24 million euros ($26.5 million) per season, is level on points with fourth-place Lazio, which pays its players more than twice as much.In July, Atalanta sold Marten de Roon to Middlesbrough for 14 million euros ($15 million), a year after paying Heerenveen 1.5 million euros ($1.6 million) for the Dutch midfielder. That helped Atalanta earn a 6 million euro ($6.5 million) profit in the offseason transfer market.Were enjoying the moment and it provides us with extra motivation to continue along this path, Gasperini said.Having helped launch the careers of players like Roberto Donadoni, Christian Vieri and Filippo Inzaghi -- plus current AC Milan standouts Riccardo Montolivo and Giacomo Bonaventura -- Atalanta has long been a starting spot for players who later achieved greatness.And with coaches like Marcello Lippi, Cesare Prandelli and Antonio Conte making stops in Bergamo, its also been on the road to managerial success.The clubs current fortune will be tested against Roma on Sunday and in games against Juventus and Milan -- the top three teams in the standings -- before the holiday break.Weve got a Tour de Force awaiting us until Christmas but weve got enthusiasm, Gasperini said. So lets see where it takes us.---Andrew Dampf on Twitter: www.twitter.com/asdampf Nemanja Bjelica Jersey . Jason Zucker and Matt Cooke also scored for Minnesota, which has won five of six. Kuemper made five saves in the first, nine in the second, and nine in the third. The rookies best save came with 2:17 left in the third period when he denied former Wild forward Matt Cullen from just outside of the crease on the right side. Taj Gibson Jersey . Clarkson had been dealing with an elbow injury in early January and will be out of action for at least one week. He has three goals and five assists through 36 games with the Leafs this season. http://www.officialtimberwolvesproshop.c...rwolves-jersey/ . Vokoun departed practice on Saturday morning after discovering swelling in his thigh. He was taken to a local hospital where the clot was revealed. The club announced the surgery following a 5-3 exhibition loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets. PHILADELPHIA -- Up until the start of Saturdays game, it seemed unlikely that Joel Embiid would play at all.He ended up having the best game of his short NBA career.Fighting through a sprained left ankle, Embiid scored a career-high 26 points in 20 minutes, and the Philadelphia 76ers routed the Phoenix Suns 120-105 for their most convincing win of the season.I felt great, Embiid said. When you play, you dont really pay attention to those kind of things. During the game, I was fine. Even now, its fine.Nik Stauskas added a season-high 21 points on 8-for-9 shooting for the Sixers, who have split their last six games after starting the season with seven straight losses. Sergio Rodriguez had eight points, 11 assists and eight rebounds.Eric Bledsoe led Phoenix (4-10) with 27 points. The Suns have lost three of their first four on their six-game road trip.You give any team confidence at home and they can get rolling, Suns coach Earl Watson said. They have a lot of confidence here. The crowd was energetic and Embiid in limited minutes was more than effective.Embiid was 3 for 5 from 3-point range and 9 for 14 from the field overall. He also grabbed seven rebounds and blocked two shots, including a ferocious one on Devin Booker in the second quarter that got the crowd roaring.The 7-foot-2 center, playing in just his ninth NBA game after a pair of foot surgeries sidelined him for his first two seasons, reached his career high on a jumper with 8:30 left.After a three-point play from Bledsoe got Phoenix within six midway through the third quarter, the Sixers reeled off a 10-0 run to open an 82-66 lead. They led by double figures the rest of the way against a banged-up Phoenix team playing the second end of a back-to-back.We got stops, we made some shots and we took off again, Sixers coach Brett Brown said.Embiid and Booker were game-time decisions due to sprained ankles. Each of them started and Embiid, hurt two nights earlier, jumped all over the Suns, scoring Phillys first eight points and 10 in the first three minutes, including a ppair of 3-pointers. Custom Minnesota Timberwolves Jerseys. Later in the first quarter, Embiid had eight points in a 10-0 run that helped Philadelphia to a 31-17 advantage, capping the spurt with his third 3 from the top of the key.Thats what makes him so tough to stop, Stauskas said. Obviously hes a dominant force down low but sometimes the bigs arent willing to step up to the line to guard him. And hes making people pay right now with that top-of-the-key 3-pointer.Booker finished with 10 points on 4-for-13 shooting.TIP-INSSuns: The Suns were without T.J. Warren (illness) and Tyson Chandler (mothers funeral). ... Phoenix recalled rookie forward Derrick Jones Jr. from D-League affiliate Northern Arizona before the game.76ers: After shooting 1 for 5 from the field, slumping sharpshooter Robert Covington has missed 27 of his last 31 shots, leading to plenty of boos from the crowd. ... The Sixers have won three straight at home, but dropped their last 21 on the road -two away from matching a franchise record.THE EMBIID PROCESSEmbiid, who already has missed four games this season as the Sixers slowly ease him back, was limited to 24 minutes or less. Jahlil Okafor, who platoons with him at center, was under the same minutes restriction because of knee surgery last season.I hope to play those two together, Brown said. With the minutes restriction, its kind of impossible right now.BOOKER GUTS IT OUTWatson said Booker struggled after returning from his own ankle injury. But the Suns coach was impressed that the second-year rising star was able to play at all.He gave us all he had, Watson said. He knew he wanted to play because we didnt have T.J. He sacrificed his body. Thats just the type of person he is. You could see he could barely move.BOMBS AWAYThe Sixers matched a franchise record with 17 3-pointers.UP NEXTSuns: Visit Washington on Monday.76ers: Host Miami on Monday night. The Heat have won five straight against Philadelphia. Cheap Soccer Jerseys Authentic Wholesale Hockey Jerseys Nike NFL Jerseys China Cheap Nike MLB Jerseys China Wholesale Baseball Jerseys China Wholesale College Jerseys Cheap Jerseys From China Wholesale Jerseys Near Me Cheap Jerseys Online Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys Authentic Cheap Soccer Jerseys China Cheap NCAA Jerseys Authentic Cheap Nike NBA Jerseys Cheap NHL Jerseys Authentic MLB Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Throwback Jerseys Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China ' ' '