RIO DE JANEIRO -- Greg Van Avermaet of Belgium out-sprinted Jakob Fuglsang of Denmark and Rafal Majka of Poland on the long run to the finish at Copacabana Beach on Saturday to win the mens Olympic road race.Van Avermaet threw his arms in the air and let out a roar when he crossed the line, blowing a kiss to the sky after the biggest victory of his career. Fuglsang followed him to take silver, while Majka appeared content with bronze.Van Avermaets victory came after Italys Vincenzo Nibali, one of the prerace favorites, and Colombian counterpart Sergio Henao crashed while trying to navigate a corner on the final harrowing descent of the 6-hour race.The riders were going so fast that TV cameras on motorbikes couldnt keep up, so it was unclear what caused them to crash. Both were still on the pavement when the cameras reached them -- just in time to see Majka slicing through the shadows and riding away.Known more for his climbing chops, Majka was eventually reeled in as the race neared the finish, where a sun-splashed crowd that had spent the day on the beach gathered to welcome them.It was unclear whether Nibali was seriously injured, though he will no doubt reflect painfully on his squandered chance. The hard nature of the course offered a rare opportunity for the Giro dItalia winner and former Tour de France champion to compete for gold.The long course was tightly guarded by police, no small challenge in a host country that has been dealing with spikes in crime. The only incident occurred a few hundred meters from the finish line, where a bomb squad detonated an unattended bag hours before the riders arrived.The race rolled off to the soundtrack of crashing waves and under clear, sunny skies buzzing with helicopters -- some carrying TV cameras, others from the military to provide security.Riders headed along the brilliant beaches of high-end neighborhoods Ipanema and Leblon, then began attacking each other on their way south. The days break quickly formed when six riders slipped away and built a gap of nearly 8 minutes, among them former world champ Michal Kwiatkowski of Poland.The brutality of the course became evident over the cobblestone sectors.Ahmet Orken of Turkey was rattled off of his bike. Tour de France champion Chris Froome needed a bike change after a mechanical issue. Richie Porte of Australia had his chain bounce off.The break stayed clear through four laps of the Grumari Circuit, a 25-kilometer loop that began stringing out the field. The riders then headed back toward Rio and began three climbs of Vista Chinesa, a tough uphill slog on forest-lined roads that splintered what was left of the peloton.So hard was the course that reigning world champion Peter Sagan of Slovakia chose to try his luck in the mountain bike race. No doubt many rivals thought it was the right decision.One by one, a pack driven by Britain, Spain and Italy pulled back the break, though Kwiatkowski made them work for it. His jersey flapping open in the midday heat, the Polish star was finally caught by six riders after nearly 200 kilometers spent at the front.Time trial favorites Porte and Nelson Oliveira of Portugal crashed during one of the fast descents, and Porte spent several minutes sitting beside the road before getting to his feet.There was more carnage on the final march over Vista Chinesa.The images of Nibali and Henao lying on the road caused a gasp among fans watching on a big screen at the finish line. Geraint Thomas of Britain joined them on the ground moments later in a race that left plenty of riders with scrapes, bruises and road rash.One that left a Belgian hearing his national anthem, too. Cheap Authentic Air Max . Shot outdoors against the stunning backdrop of Banff, Alta., the networks 30-minute original production airs tonight at 8pm et/5pm pt on TSN2. The four All-Star teams will play for $100,000 in prize money during TSNs annual skins game, airing live this weekend on TSN from The Fenlands Banff Recreation Centre. Cheap Air Max . Roman Josi had a goal and an assist to lead the Predators to a 4-1 victory over the Dallas Stars on Monday night. https://www.airmaxchina.us/ . There was no hesitation from the 40th-ranked Pospisil, from Vernon, B.C., who admitted that he cut back on his training sessions over the last few days to conserve energy as the long ATP season finishes next week at the Paris Masters. Clearance Air Max . Mats Zuccarello and Derek Stepan scored shootout goals, and backup goalie Cam Talbot earned his second win in two nights as the Rangers shook off a late tying tally and beat the Maple Leafs 2-1 Monday night. Discount Air Max . John Tavares, Thomas Vanek and Kyle Okposo were also being counted on to slow down sizzling Rangers forward Rick Nash. That plan didnt go so well early. AMES, Iowa -- Iowa State is playing defense better than it has in years.The Cyclones offense has been uncharacteristically sluggish at times though, putting their school-record streak in the Top 25 in jeopardy.Jacob Evans III made two free throws with 20 seconds left in overtime and Cincinnati upset No. 19 Iowa State 55-54 on Thursday night, the Cyclones second straight loss.Kyle Washington had 13 points and 10 rebounds and Evans had 11 points for the Bearcats (6-1), who also snapped Iowa States 37-game non-conference home winning streak.Cincinnati outrebounded the smaller Cyclones 46-34. It shot just 3 of 21 from 3-point range and 35.5 percent overall, but its defense stifled Iowa State -- which just 11 days ago scored a program-best 130 points.To win it when you go 3 for 21 from 3, on the road against a great team like that, and they still win the game? It says a lot about the character of our team, Cincinnati coach Mick Cronin said.Gary Clark and Kevin Johnson also scored 11 points each for the Bearcats.Monte Morris had 15 points for the Cyclones (5-2) and Matt Thomas scored 13.Iowa States Naz Mitrou-Long, who has hit a number of game-winning 3s in his career, had one rim out at the regulation buzzer. He did not score.I thought they really competed. Showed a lot of toughness, a lot of grit, Iowa State coach Steve Prohm said. They were going to try to control the tempo. The biggest key is just we werent able to get enough good, quality shots on the offensive end. Thats something Ive got to look at and do better with.The Cyclones have dropped their last two by a total of three points after a 5-0 start. But Iowa State had its worst offensive output since 2013 on Thursday, scoring its fewest points in an overtime game in 11 years.They were just tougher than us, said Darrell Bowie, who had 11 points with seven rebounds for Iowa State.ddddddddddddTHE BIG PICTURECincinnati: The Bearcats were active in disrupting Iowa States often-lethal transition offense and kept the Cyclones (5 of 21 on 3s) from getting good looks beyond the arc. This win will look really good on their postseason resume.Iowa State: The Cyclones might have issues with bigger teams like Cincinnati all season. Iowa State thrives behind a deep and talented backcourt, but the Bearcats were often able to make it a half-court game and disrupt the Cyclones ball movement -- although the absence of promising freshman forward Solomon Young didnt help.POLL IMPLICATIONSIowa State has been ranked in 60 consecutive polls, third-best nationally behind Kansas and Arizona. That could end on Monday -- though losing on a neutral floor to Gonzaga by two last week and to one to the tough-minded Bearcats certainly doesnt mean the Cyclones are in trouble quite yet.BALL MOVEMENTIt was the key to the game, because Cincinnati had it and Iowa State didnt. If you move the ball, and you move people around, youre a much harder team to block out, Cronin said when asked about his teams dominance on the offensive glass. The Cyclones had just five assists on 22 baskets -- an extremely low number for a team with Morris, an AP preseason All-America. forced a missed jumper ahead of Evans game-winner, and all Iowa State could get on its final possession was a deep, off-balance 3-pointer by Mitrou-Long.UP NEXTCincinnati hosts Bowling Green on Sunday.Iowa State hosts Nebraska-Omaha on Monday, a tune-up for Thursdays road game at struggling Iowa.---More college basketball at www.collegebasketball.ap.org ' ' '