DALLAS—Dirk Nowitzki was in regular-season form with 30 points and 10 rebounds, Caron Butler scored 14 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter, and the Dallas Mavericks beat the Bulls 88-83 on Thursday night.Butler’s 22-footer with 5:22 left gave Dallas (1-1) the lead for good at 76-75. He scored his team’s next seven, capped by a 3-pointer with 3:14 to play that extended the Mavericks’ advantage to 83-75.Derrick Rose scored 17 points, and Joakim Noah, who agreed to a five-year, $60 million contract extension on Sunday, had 13 points, eight rebounds and six assists.Nowitzki’s 3-pointer with 2.3 seconds left in the second quarter gave Dallas a 45-44 edge at the break. The Mavericks carried a 66-63 lead into the final quarter.

SAN FRANCISCO—Tim Lincecum pitched a two-hitter and struck out 14 in a dominating postseason debut, and the San Francisco Giants scored their only run after a questionable umpiring call to beat the wild-card Atlanta Braves 1-0 in Game 1 of their NL division series Thursday night.The Freak really showed up for San Francisco in his biggest start yet, pitching his own gem a day after Philadelphia’s Roy Halladay threw only the second no-hitter in postseason history in his debut. Lincecum outdueled playoff veteran Derek Lowe and caught a break, too.Cody Ross singled in a run in the fourth after Buster Posey was called safe on a steal of second by umpire Paul Emmel. Posey appeared to be tagged out by Brooks Conrad on the play.

MINNEAPOLIS—Andy Pettitte and the New York Yankees stumbled through September and landed in the AL wild-card spot.As the Minnesota Twins can attest, the Yankees are hardly an underdog in October.Pushing the home-field advantage back in Minnesota’s face, Pettitte turned in a vintage postseason performance with seven smooth innings and Lance Berkman had two big hits for New York in a 5-2 victory over the Twins on Thursday evening for a 2-0 lead in their best-of-5 division series.Berkman hit a go-ahead home run in the fifth and a tiebreaking double in the seventh against Carl Pavano, sending the Twins to their 11th straight postseason loss. Eight of those have come against the Yankees, who trailed in each of those games.Mariano Rivera got three outs for his second save of the series, extending his postseason record to 41.The Twins haven’t won a postseason game since 2004, matching the Philadelphia Phillies (1915-1976) for the second-longest streak in history behind the Boston Red Sox (1986-1995) and their 13 in a row.Berkman, yet another big-name veteran finding a place on a Yankees postseason roster, even on the downside of his career, made it 2-1 with his drive into the left-center bullpen in the fifth. His double in the seventh — one pitch after it appeared Pavano sneaked strike three past him — drove in Jorge Posada and gave New York a 3-2 lead.The blown call by plate umpire Hunter Wendelstedt led to the ejection of Twins manager Ron Gardenhire following Berkman’s double.Derek Jeter chased his old teammate Pavano off the mound with a half-swing RBI single to make it 4-2. Curtis Granderson scored New York’s first run and came up with three more hits. And the Yankees headed back home for Game 3 on Saturday night, with a commanding lead over the team they own in October.Pettitte retired 12 in a row until Orlando Hudson’s homer tied it at 2 in the sixth, but after Delmon Young’s two-out triple he escaped with a weak groundout by Jim Thome. Pettitte needed only 88 pitches to finish seven innings, with five hits and two runs allowed. He walked one and struck out four.This was the same matchup on the mound as Game 3 of last year’s series, and despite a savvy, poised performance by Pavano, Pettitte was a step ahead.The old man, as Hudson respectfully referred to him the night before, broke a bunch of bats and was able to escape a bases-loaded, one-out situation in the second by allowing Danny Valencia’s only sacrifice fly.Pettitte spoke the day before about how, while he doesn’t change his approach, these October appearances simply feel different to him. As one of the Yankees’ famed Core Four, he sure would know. This was his 41st career postseason start and 19th win — both major league records.After an outstanding first half, Pettitte strained his left groin muscle and missed two months until returning for three starts at the end of the regular season. His absence compounded concerns about the rotation, but after winning a so-so start by CC Sabathia in Game 1 and getting this vintage effort from Pettitte the Yankees so far don’t look as though they’ll be affected by any pitching problems.Pavano walked Posada to start the seventh and thought he had Berkman struck out on a 2-2 pitch that appeared to be a strike, but Berkman sent a long drive to center and Posada raced around the bases.Gardenhire was steamed, so he lured Wendelstedt to the mound during an extended conversation with his players — then got tossed after barking at Wendelstedt on his way back.Pavano allowed 10 hits and four runs in six innings.Many of the fans proudly wore their pregame giveaways — fuzzy black stick-on replica mustaches in honor of Pavano’s appearance. He started strong, but the Yankees were sure on the ball in the fourth. Granderson crushed a leadoff double and scored on Alex Rodriguez’s sacrifice fly. Even the inning-ending double-play ball hit straight back to Pavano by Nick Swisher was scalded.Before the game, Gardenhire acknowledged this was a “do-or-die” game for his team, which fell to 2-11 against the Yankees in four division series since 2003. The look changed – they wore their 1961 throwback uniforms — but the plot didn’t.So famously unflappable at home while winning the 1987 and 1991 World Series at the Metrodome, the Twins have now sent their fans home disappointed from a postseason game 10 straight times. Their last win was Game 1 of the AL Championship Series in 2002.Though early-inning 1-0 deficits are hardly a hurdle for any team, the Yankees have continued to make coming back a routine while the Twins can’t break their bad habit. They don’t have a comeback victory in any of their last 22 postseason games, dating to Game 4 of the 2002 ALDS.In their previous seven postseason losses to the Yankees, the Twins went ahead in each one. The Yankees outscored them 37-7 from the point of their biggest lead. The Twins struck first against Pettitte, but not long after the Yankees started their attack.Even Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin”‘ — the ballad played often here after the seventh inning — didn’t generate much of a buzz. The crowd of 42,035 even emitted some boos after Berkman’s homer, another sign of how easily deflated these fans have become while watching their Twins lose game after game after game to the modern-day Bronx Bombers.

NOTES—The Yankees have never lost a postseason game in Minnesota, improving to 7-0. … In their 13 meetings in the playoffs since 2003, the Yankees have homered 16 times against the Twins. Fourteen of those have come in the last eight meetings.

ST. PETERSBURG—Two dominating pitching performances and a long home run by playoff neophyte Michael Young have the Texas Rangers on the verge of winning a postseason series for the first time.Young hit a three-run homer one pitch after keeping a fifth-inning at-bat alive with a disputed check-swing, helping C.J. Wilson and the AL West champions beat the Tampa Bay Rays 6-0 Thursday for a 2-0 lead in their AL Division Series.Texas is the only current major league franchise that’s never won a playoff series. After winning consecutive games on the road, that can change with one victory when the best-of-5 matchup shifts to Rangers Ballpark this weekend.Game 3 is Saturday, with Matt Garza pitching for Tampa Bay against Colby Lewis.Ian Kinsler also homered for the Rangers, who are in the playoffs for the first time since 1999 and hadn’t won a postseason game in 14 years before Cliff Lee shut down the sputtering Rays in their home park on Wednesday.Wilson was equally impressive, allowing two hits in 6 2/3 innings. He gave up a single to leadoff man Jason Bartlett to start the game, then limited the Rays to just three baserunners on an error, a walk and a hit batter over the next five innings.Willy Aybar doubled in the seventh for the second hit off the Texas starter, who departed with runners at second and third. Darren O’Day struck out pinch-hitter Matt Joyce, and Darren Oliver got four outs to finish the two-hitter before a sellout crowd of 35,535.Long known for fielding powerful lineups, the Rangers finally look as though they have the arms to match.The Rays, whose .247 batting average was the lowest for an AL club that made the postseason since the 1981 Oakland Athletics, were held to eight hits in two games at Tropicana Field, where they had one of the best home records in the league this season.Texas pitchers fanned 23 batters in two days, which is not surprising. Tampa Bay’s 1,292 strikeouts this season were the most by a major league team that reached the playoffs.Young, in the playoffs for the first time after 10-plus seasons with Texas, broke the game open with a 431-foot shot to center field off Chad Qualls, who thought he had struck out the six-time All-Star on a 2-2 pitch. Plate umpire Jim Wolf — the brother of Brewers pitcher Randy Wolf — appealed to first base umpire Jerry Meals, who ruled that Young held up in time.Rays players were incensed on the bench, and replays showed that Young probably went too far. After the home run on the next pitch for a 5-0 Rangers lead, Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon left the dugout to talk with Qualls and was ejected by Wolf when he yelled at Meals from the mound..Maddon also disputed a crucial call early in Wednesday’s 5-1 loss to Lee. Plate umpire Tim Welke said a pitch hit Carlos Pena’s bat with the bases loaded in the first inning, ruling it a foul tip. Maddon unsuccessfully argued that Pena was hit by the pitch.Tampa Bay failed to score when Pena and Rocco Baldelli struck out.Kinsler homered in the fourth off losing pitcher James Shields, who got the Game 2 assignment for Tampa Bay even though he lost 15 games during the regular season and hadn’t won since Aug. 29. The right-hander allowed four runs and four hits over 4 1/3 innings.Kinsler also had an RBI single off Qualls in the fifth.With the Rays facing a lefty starter for the second straight day, Maddon held the struggling Pena out of the lineup. Wilson has been extremely tough on left-handed batter this season, and Pena – whose .196 batting average was the lowest among all major league qualifiers – went 0 for 3 with three strikeouts against Lee on Wednesday.The Rangers manufactured a run in the third. Matt Treanor was hit by a pitch, moved from second to third on an infield single and scored when Shields made an errant pickoff throw. The right-hander tried to pick off Elvis Andrus at first base, but the throw hit Andrus and skipped into foul territory.　NOTES—It was the 16th time a manager was ejected from a postseason game and the first since Tony La Russa was thrown out of St. Louis’ 2-1 loss at Houston in Game 4 of the NL championship series on Oct. 16, 2005, Bobby Cox, who holds the major league record for ejections as a manager, had been kicked out of two playoff games before Atlanta’s postseason opener at San Francisco on Thursday night. … The Rays removed Baldelli from the roster and added Aybar, who was the designated hitter Thursday. The team said Baldelli, who was 0 for 3 with two strikeouts in Game 1, had left leg fatigue, a symptom of mitochondrial disorder, a condition he has that was diagnosed in 2008.

LAKE FOREST—Bears quarterback Jay Cutler will sit out this week’s game at Carolina because of a concussion.Bears spokesman Scott Hagel said Thursday that Cutler was examined by team and independent doctors after practicing on a limited basis the previous day.Hagel said the doctors “all agreed that participation in practice” went well but felt that sitting out “was the right way to go.” He said Cutler till will practice Thursday and Friday, and his status will be re-evaluated early next week.Cutler was injured in last week’s 17-3 loss to the New York Giants, when he was sacked nine times in the first half. Veteran Todd Collins, who took over to start the second half and left that game with a stinger, will start against the Panthers on Sunday.     “I’m pretty comfortable,” Collins said. “The best way to provide leadership, I think, is to go out there and perform well. That’s the job as the quarterback, to move the ball and score points. That’s what I’m going to try to do to help lead the team.”     Collins said Lovie Smith told him late Thursday morning that he would be starting, news that he was expecting to hear.    “Jay went down with a concussion, and usually with concussions, they want you to come back fully ready before you get on the field again,” he said. This will be the first time Cutler has missed a start due to injury. He had made 57 in a row since Denver turned to him as a rookie in 2006, but he’ll be watching this week after a brutal performance against the Giants that wiped out much of the goodwill created by a 3-0 start.Smith has said the Bears started noticing symptoms after the second-to-last play of the second quarter, when Cutler’s head banged the turf while being taken down by Aaron Ross on the Giants’ ninth sack.In reality, Cutler started taking a beating as soon as he stepped on the field. There was one sack early in the second quarter when Osi Umenyiora ran through tight end Greg Olsen and nailed Cutler from behind, the ball popping out and into the arms of center Olin Kreutz.Cutler got up and took a few steps toward the wrong sideline before correcting himself.Soon after, he had what appeared to be a dazed look when the TV cameras showed him sitting on the sideline, and his decision-making was questionable at best. Cutler held onto the ball too long at times and didn’t see open receivers, and wound up taking hit after hit.

MINNEAPOLIS—Be it the majestic views of Target Field or that dusty old hornets’ nest they called the Metrodome, it just doesn’t seem to matter.The New York Yankees simply own the Minnesota Twins in the playoffs.Mark Teixeira hit a tiebreaking, two-run homer in the seventh inning and the Yankees rallied to a 6-4 victory Wednesday night in Game 1 of the AL Division Series, the Twins’ 10th consecutive postseason loss.Yankees ace CC Sabathia labored, but reliever David Robertson fanned Jim Thome in a key spot and Mariano Rivera got the final four outs to close another win for the defending World Series champions. The Yankees rallied from a 3-0 deficit against Francisco Liriano and improved to 10-2 against the Twins in the playoffs since 2003.Even a blown call by the umpires — shades of the previoius two postseasons — that went against the Yankees with two outs in the bottom of the ninth didn’t hurt them.Michael Cuddyer had a home run, double and two RBI for the Twins, who played their first outdoor postseason game in Minnesota since 1970. They were hoping a move from the shabby Dome outdoors to gorgeous Target Field would turn their fortunes around, but it was more of the same against the mighty Yankees.Game 2 will be Thursday night. Carl Pavano will pitch for the Twins against Andy Pettitte. Jorge Posada had two hits and RBI and UIC Alum Curtis Granderson added a two-run triple for New York, which has never won a postseason series as a wild card.Rivera recorded his 40th career postseason saves in 45 chances, but had to work a little harder than he planned. Replays showed Yankees right fielder Greg Golson — inserted that inning for defensive purposes — caught Delmon Young’s sinking liner for what should’ve been the final out.But umpire Chris Guccione ruled that he trapped it and the call stood after the umpires huddled. Manager Joe Girardi came out to argue, but to no avail.In fact, the Yankees benefited against the Twins in the playoffs last year when a ball hit by Joe Mauer that clearly landed fair was called foul.This time, the missed call brought Thome to the plate as the potential tying run. Rivera retired the slugger on a popup to third baseman Alex Rodriguez to end the game.Rivera came into the game in the eighth with runners at second and third and retired Denard Span on a grounder to preserve a two-run edge.Liriano gave up four runs on six hits with seven strikeouts and three walks in 5 2/3 innings for the Twins.The Dominican lefty breezed through the first five innings of his first career postseason start, allowing only four hits as the Twins jumped out to the early lead.Cuddyer crushed a two-run homer into the trees in center field in the second inning and Hudson scored on a passed ball in the third to make it 3-0, as more than 42,000 at jam-packed Target Field leaped to their feet.But these power-packed Yankees, who swept the Twins in the ALDS last season en route to their 27th title, don’t rattle so easily.During the regular season, the Yankees overcame deficits of three runs or more to win seven times, and led the majors with 48 come-from-behind victories. Seven of their 11 victories in the postseason last year came after they fell behind, including all three against the Twins.Their latest started in the sixth against Liriano who retired 10 in a row before Teixeira doubled down the left-field line. Liriano walked Rodriguez and Robinson Cano and Posada followed with RBI singles to make it 3-2.Rather than go to Jose Mijares in the bullpen, Twins manager Ron Gardenhire stuck with Liriano against the lefty Granderson, who came into the game hitting only .234 in 158 at-bats against lefties.Before the game, Girardi was asked about going with Granderson, who was 4 for 22 against Liriano. The center fielder made Girardi look pretty smart, hitting a triple off the scoreboard in right-center field to give the Yankees a 4-3 lead.Sabathia gave it right back in the bottom of the inning, walking rookie Danny Valencia with two outs and the bases loaded to tie the game. But the big lefty — one of the leading contenders for the AL Cy Young award — fanned J.J. Hardy to escape the jam.Sabathia gave up four runs — three earned — on five hits with five strikeouts and three walks. Teixeira came up with one on and one out in the seventh to face Jesse Crain, who has been the Twins’ best reliever over the second half of the season. But Teixeira sent a slider soaring just inside the right-field foul pole, completely deflating the juiced home crowd.It’s not the first time Teixeira has trampled the Twins’ hearts. His 11th-inning home run in Game 2 last year gave the Yankees a 4-3 victory and got them rolling toward the sweep.The Twins had a chance in the seventh, when Thome came to the plate with two runners on and two outs. But Robertson got him to chase a breaking ball in the dirt to end the inning.In the previous four years, 15 of 16 teams to win first-round openers have gone on to advance to the league championship series. The lone exception was the 2006 Detroit Tigers, who lost the opener at Yankee Stadium and then won three in a row.No team has lost a first-round opener at home and still advanced since the 2005 Los Angeles Angels, who beat the Yankees in five games.

PHILADELPHIA—Roy Halladay spent his whole career waiting for this start, wondering what it would be like to pitch in the playoffs.It was better than he — or anyone else — could have predicted.Halladay threw the second no-hitter in postseason history, leading the Philadelphia Phillies over the Cincinnati Reds 4-0 in Game 1 of the NL Division Series on Wednesday.Don Larsen is the only other pitcher to throw a postseason no-hitter. He tossed a perfect game for the New York Yankees in the 1956 World Series against Brooklyn. The 54th anniversary of Larsen’s gem is this Friday.Halladay took the Year of the Pitcher into October. The excitement spread beyond Citizens Bank Park — the last two outs were shown on the video board at Target Field, where the Twins were preparing to play the Yankees, and Minnesota fans cheered.The All-Star right-hander, who threw a perfect game at Florida on May 29, dominated the Reds with a sharp fastball and a devastating slow curve in his first playoff start.The overmatched Reds never came close to a hit. Halladay allowed only one runner, walking Jay Bruce on a full count with two outs in the fifth, and struck out eight.Halladay threw 104 pitches, 79 for strikes. “It’s no fun out there,” Reds slugger Joey Votto said. “It’s like trying to hit nothing. He’s an ace among aces.” Halladay spent 12 seasons with Toronto, far from the postseason. A trade last December brought him to the defending two-time NL champions, and gave him this chance.With a sellout crowd standing in the ninth and chanting “Let’s Go, Doc!” Halladay got a loud ovation when he jogged to the mound to start the inning.Ramon Hernandez popped out to second baseman Chase Utley for the first out. Pinch-hitter Miguel Cairo then fouled out to third baseman Wilson Valdez.Halladay then retired Brandon Phillips on a tapper in front of the plate to end it. Catcher Carlos Ruiz pounced on the ball, getting down on his knee as the ball rolled near Phillips’ bat, and made a strong throw for the final out.

ST. PETERSBURG—Cliff Lee, postseason ace for hire.Picking up where he left off during in a dazzling October run a year ago, Lee shut down the Tampa Bay Rays while outpitching David Price and leading the Texas Rangers to a 5-1 victory Wednesday in the opening game of the AL playoffs.These days, no pitcher is doing it better.Lee matched a postseason best with 10 strikeouts while allowing five hits — just two after escaping a bases-loaded jam in the first inning. During one dominating stretch, he retired 16 of 17 batters before giving up Ben Zobrist’s homer in the seventh.Game 2 is Thursday with left-hander C.J. Wilson taking the mound for Texas against right-hander James Shields, who hasn’t won since Aug. 29.Lee improved to 5-0 in six career postseason starts. He went 4-0 with a 1.56 ERA in five starts for the Philadelphia Phillies in 2009, including 2-0 with a 2.81 ERA against the New York Yankees in the World Series.The 32-year-old lefty lost to the Rays three times during the regular season, however the AL East champions were no match for the 2008 AL Cy Young Award winner this time. The Rangers, in the playoffs for the first time in 11 years, stopped a nine-game postseason losing streak that began in 1996. Nelson Cruz and Bengie Molina homered for the AL West champions. Darren O’Day and Darren Oliver pitched the eighth, and rookie Neftali Feliz worked out of a ninth-inning jam by striking out the final two batters.Price, a 19-game winner, allowed five runs and nine hits in 6 2/3 innings. He struck eight and, like Lee, walked none.Lee began this season with the Seattle Mariners, who dealt him in early July to Texas, which was looking to bolster its rotation with a No. 1 starter capable of leading the Rangers deep into the postseason. Philadelphia acquired him from Cleveland during last year’s run to the NL pennant, and the lefty is eligible for free agency after the season.The Rays beat him twice while he was with the Mariners, and once with the Rangers during Tampa Bay’s three-game sweep of Texas at Tropicana Field in August. Tampa Bay had opportunities against Lee early, but failed to score after Jason Bartlett, Carl Crawford and Evan Longoria singled to load the bases in the first. After giving up a leadoff double to Zobrist in the second, Lee retired 12 batters in a row in front of a sellout crowd of 35,474. For Tampa Bay, it was a continuation of an offensive funk that began two weeks ago. The Rays lost six of 10 games down the stretch — all against last-place teams — before clinching their second division title in three years on the last day of the season. They dropped five of six during part of the stretch, three by shutout.Texas is in the postseason for first time since 1999 and its nine-game playoff losing streak had matched Minnesota and the Cubs for the longest active skid in the major leagues. All three of the Rangers’ previous playoff series were against New York, with their only other postseason victory coming against the Yankees on Oct. 1, 1996.

MILWAUKEE—Earl Boykins scored 12 of his 14 points in the fourth quarter to help the Milwaukee Bucks to a 92-83 victory over the Bulls in their preseason opener at the Bradley Center Tuesday night.Joakim Noah of the Bulls had 10 points, six rebounds, a steal and an assist, one day after agreeing to a five-year contract extension worth $60 million.Luol Deng had 16 points and Derrick Rose added 13.The Bulls shot 42.5 percent and were outrebounded 42-27, but they forced 24 turnovers and had 14 steals to Milwaukee’s eight.Drew Gooden and Keyon Dooling both had 12 points and Luc Mbah a Moute added 11 for Milwaukee. Larry Sanders, the team’s first-round draft pick, finished with seven points, two rebounds and three fouls in just under 15 minutes.The Central Division rivals were each without a key player.Carlos Boozer, the Bulls’ major offseason acquisition, fractured the fifth metacarpal bone in his hand Saturday. Boozer, who said he fell over a bag at his home, underwent surgery on Tuesday and is expected to be out six to eight weeks.Andrew Bogut sat out the game for the Bucks in a precautionary move after his surgically repaired right hand got smacked during practice Friday.With six games left last season, Bogut slammed to the court after a fast-break dunk against Phoenix and fractured his right wrist and index finger and dislocated his right elbow. He underwent two surgeries within days and then rehabbed during the summer.Chris Douglas-Roberts, a guard acquired in an offseason trade with New Jersey, had a tough debut with the Bucks. He started, but fouled out in the third quarter. He was 4 of 6 from the field and had 10 points, three rebounds, three assists and three turnovers.Kyle Korver, a free agent who appeared in 52 game for Utah last season, came off the bench to score 11 points midway through the fourth quarter, including a 3-pointer that pulled the Bulls within 82-81.Boykins made all eight of his free throws and was 3 for 5 from the field.

LAKE FOREST—The Bears have terminated the contract of defensive end Mark Anderson, who four years ago made a rookie club-record 12 sacks.The team on Tuesday signed a veteran defensive end Charles Grant, who was cut by the Saints in March and released last month by the Miami Dolphins before playing two games with Omaha in the United States Football League. Grant, who signed a one-year deal, started 16 games for the Saints last season before an arm injury forced him to miss the playoffs.Anderson, a fifth-round pick in 2006, was a pass-rushing sensation in his first season but never developed into the player the Bears expected after that fast beginning.Grant was originally selected by the Saints in the first round in 2002. He has 47 sacks in 118 career games, including 106 starts.