time even though Poseys throw beat Bautista to third base.

RALEIGH, N.C. -- BeeJay Anya provided North Carolina State with the physical edge it desperately needed against Tennessee State, while coach Mark Gottfried said his team showed some defensive improvement after several shaky outings.The Wolfpack needed every bit of it, too, to beat Tennessee State.Anya had 12 points, a career-high 14 rebounds and seven blocked shots to help the Wolfpack beat the Tigers 67-55 in overtime on Saturday in the programs annual return to its former campus home -- a newly renovated Reynolds Coliseum.Im not sure wed have won this game two or three weeks ago, Gottfried said.Terry Henderson scored 21 points to lead N.C. State (7-2), including a banked-in 3-pointer with 2:57 left in the extra period that put the Wolfpack ahead for good in a 14-0 game-closing run. N.C. State had allowed teams to shoot 45 percent coming in, but held Tennessee State (7-2) to 32 percent for the game -- including an 8-minute scoreless stretch that helped the Wolfpack rally from a 38-30 second-half deficit with a heavy dose of zone defense.Anya, a 6-foot-9, 320-pound senior, was big in that effort with his work in the paint. He also did it while playing a career-high 38 minutes.They kind of came in here and thought they could punk us, Anya said. I aint no punk, so thats one thing they aint going to do to me. So I came in and heard them talking and it got me going.Anya had managed a total of eight points, 11 rebounds and four blocks in his previous five games.The guy affected the game in just about every way, Gottfried said.Wayne Martin had 16 points to lead the Tigers (7-2), who led 55-53 on Darreon Reddicks 3-pointer with 3:46 left in OT but didnt score again.My guys fought really hard, Tennessee State coach Dana Ford said. I really believed they deserved to win the game.BIG PICTURETennessee State: The Tigers gave their power-conference foe fits with their athleticism and toughness, controlling the glass much of the game while making the Wolfpack work for shots. Still, Tennessee State fell to 0-15 against Atlantic Coast Conference teams.N.C. State: Put simply, this is still a young group trying to figure things out. The Wolfpack didnt shoot well, had trouble getting good looks and missed too many free throws, though the strong finish was a good sign for Gottfried.I thought we took a major step this week with our defense, Gottfried said. Now we left our offense somewhere else, but defensively we got better.TIP-INSTennessee State: The Tigers finished with a 48-45 rebounding advantage. ... Tennessee State finished with 18 turnovers. ... Jordan Reed had 10 rebounds. ... McCall finished with 10 points.N.C. State: Maverick Rowan (concussion) played 12 minutes and scored two points in his first game since the opener. ... N.C. State shot 35 percent but scored 18 second-chance points. ... The Wolfpack scored 20 points off turnovers. ... N.C. State made 23 of 36 free throws (64 percent), including 6 of 7 in OT.FRESHMAN WATCHWolfpack point guard Dennis Smith Jr. finished with 19 points and came up with several big plays. First he hit a tough fading shot to tie it at 50 with 46.4 seconds left in regulation, then he came up with a key three-point play with 58.5 seconds left before adding a punctuating windmill breakaway dunk to cap a game-closing run.UP NEXTTennessee State: The Tigers return home to host Alabama State on Wednesday night.N.C. State: N.C. State hosts Appalachian State on Thursday night, a game headlined by the debut of five-star freshman Omer Yurtseven. The NCAA required the Turkish 7-footer to sit his first nine games after examining his amateur status following an overseas career.---Follow Aaron Beard on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/aaronbeardap---More AP college basketball at http://collegebasketball.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-Top25 Wholesale NFL Jerseys China . -- Catcher Brett Hayes has agreed to a $630,000, one-year contract with the Kansas City Royals, avoiding salary arbitration. Cheap MLB Jerseys 2018 . The FA rejected Wilsheres appeal that the length of his punishment was "clearly excessive" and said Thursday his suspension begins with immediate effect. He will miss league matches against Chelsea on Monday and West Ham on Dec. http://www.cheapmlbchinajerseys.com/ . The team said Saturday that Lopez was hurt during its 121-120 overtime loss at Philadelphia on Friday. The Nets said they would issue another update next week after consultation with their doctors. MLB Jerseys China . Peter Holland and Brad Staubitz were sent to Toronto on Saturday as the Maple Leafs traded defenceman Jesse Blacker and draft picks to the Anaheim Ducks. Wholesale Baseball Jerseys China . - After leading the Saints to a fourth playoff appearance in five seasons, Drew Brees expressed confidence in the direction of his team and, perhaps more importantly, showed a willingness to listen to contract proposals if the team needs his help getting under the NFLs salary cap.SAN FRANCISCO -- With his knuckleball dancing at a variety of speeds, R.A. Dickey once again looked like the Cy Young Award winner the Toronto Blue Jays acquired in the off-season. Dickey allowed two hits in 8 1-3 innings and sparked a four-run fifth with an RBI double, leading Toronto to a 4-0 victory over the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday. "He was just about perfect today," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said. "He had it all going on. He was in the strike zone. Everything was really dancing today. ... Thats him at his best right there." Mark DeRosa added a two-run single and Adam Lind had three hits for his eighth multihit performance in the past 12 games, helping the Blue Jays earn a split of the two-game series. Barry Zito (4-4) was done in by the one big inning and lost at home for the first time since last August. The defending World Series champion Giants have lost 11 of 18 games heading into a nine-game road trip. Dickey (5-7) bounced back from a pair of rough starts in which he allowed six runs each to Baltimore and Atlanta. With the back and neck problems that contributed to his slow start in Toronto now in the past, Dickey returned to the form that helped him dominate the National League last season for the New York Mets. He was able to change speeds with his knuckler and throw it for strikes all game, getting the Giants to swing early in a very efficient outing. "I was changing speeds a lot today, which was good," Dickey said. "I was able to throw a 63, 64 miles per hour one for a strike and I was able to throw a 79 miles per hour one for a strike. As Ive gotten healthier, I felt like Ive been able to have the latitude to be able to do that. Before it was just trying to muster everything I could to survive an outing." Dickey retired his first 11 batters before Pablo Sandoval lined a clean single to right field. He didnt allow another baserunner until Hunter Pence walked to lead off the eighth in his best start since joining the Blue Jays in the off-season. He was replaced after allowing a single to Gregor Blanco and walking Marco Scutaro with one out in the ninth inning. "He was commanding the knuckleball to where he wanted to throw it," Blanco said. "He was unbelievable. ... He has a lot of movement on it, whichh makes him so difficult.dddddddddddd You dont know where the ball will go. You have to hit a mistake like I did in the last inning when that ball hung up." Casey Janssen got Sandoval to hit into a double play for his 12th save in 12 chances. The Blue Jays also helped Dickey with their gloves, with shortstop Maicer Izturis making diving stops to rob Buster Posey and Sandoval of possible hits. Zito ran into trouble when he walked struggling No. 8 hitter Henry Blanco with one out in the fifth inning. Dickey then squared around to bunt when he saw Sandoval crashing in from third base and Brandon Belt from first. Dickey pulled back and decided to swing away, knocking a grounder past the charging Sandoval and into the left-field corner for an RBI double. "I saw both Panda and Belt crashing," Dickey said. "It was slug bunt all the way. I had played it out in my mind that that was what I was going to do if I saw both those guys closing in on me." Dickey scored on a two-out single by Jose Bautista. Zitos second walk of the game led to more trouble after Edwin Encarnacion and Bautista pulled off a double steal when Sandoval couldnt get the tag down in time even though Poseys throw beat Bautista to third base. That set up DeRosas two-run single. "The fifth inning was the Achilles heel today," Zito said. "Being unable to minimize the damage, the slash hit was OK, but then I gave up a couple of two-out hits that hurt." Zito allowed seven hits and walked three in six innings while losing at home for the first time since Aug. 2, 2012, against the Mets. The Giants had won Zitos last 14 starts at home, including one in the World Series, and he entered the game with a 1.40 ERA this season at AT&T Park. NOTES: It was Dickeys first extra-base hit since doubling against Philadelphia on Sept. 24, 2010. ... Zito became the first Giants starter to pitch at least six innings and not strike out a batter since he did it May 12, 2007, at Colorado. ... San Francisco CF Angel Pagan missed his 10th straight game with a strained left hamstring but manager Bruce Bochy hopes he will be able to play Friday in Arizona. ... The Blue Jays finished 3-4 on their road trip that included stops in Atlanta and San Diego and return home to face Texas on Friday. ' ' '