It has been a roller-coaster season for Luke Tasker and the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. LeBron James Shoes Outlet . The defending East Division champions lost their first three games and seven of their opening nine. But a 6-2 record since Labour Day - buoyed by a perfect 5-0 mark at new Tim Hortons Field - has the Ticats in control of their own destiny heading into their regular-season finale against the Montreal Alouettes on Saturday. A win against the surging Alouettes (9-8) will secure the Ticats (8-9) a playoff spot. Should Hamilton win by eight or more points, it would finish atop the division standings and host the Eastern Final on Nov. 23. Watch all the action on TSN at 3:30pm et/12:30pm pt. Montreal beat Hamilton 38-31 in the first meeting between the teams on Sept. 7. Theres been a few games weve let slip away but were where we want to be right now, Tasker said. We control our own destiny to a certain extent. If we win that will be good enough to get into the playoffs. Thats assuming Toronto beats Ottawa on Friday night. A win by the expansion Redblacks would eliminate the Argonauts from playoff contention and secure Hamilton a post-season berth and leave the Ticats and Alouettes to play for first Saturday. Montreal has already clinched a playoff berth. It would cement first place with a win over Hamilton or a loss by seven points or less. Now, should both Toronto and Montreal win this weekend, the Als would finish first and Argos second based on having won the season series with Hamilton. The Ticats would miss the playoffs the result of the West Division crossover. The Alouettes are the CFLs hottest team, having won six straight and eight of their last nine games after a miserable 1-7 start. Quarterback Jonathan Crompton is an outstanding 8-1 since becoming Montreals starter despite completing just 59 per cent of his passes. He has yet to record a 300-yard passing game and has thrown almost as many interceptions (eight) as TDs (10). The only blemish on Cromptons record is a 33-16 road loss to Edmonton on Sept. 12. Despite the presence of big-play receivers Duron Carter (71 catches, 987 yards, six TDs) and S.J. Green (49 receptions, 732 yards, four TDs), Montreal is ranked last in passing percentage and second-last in passing and scoring. But the Als are second overall in time of possession (31 minutes 10 seconds), meaning they do a good job of controlling the ball when they have it. The only thing that matters is hes 8-1 and knows how to win, Ticats defensive back Craig Butler said. Before he came in they were kind of trying to find an identity. He manages the game well and knows who to get the ball to. Those guys (Carter and Green) are his playmakers ... when it comes down to crunch time theyre the guys they go to. With Crompton and company controlling the ball, it keeps a rugged Montreal defence fresh. Thats certainly been bad news for opponents as the Alouettes lead the CFL in forced turnovers (45), fumble recoveries (21) and fourth in points allowed (21.5 per game). The unit has been especially stingy over the six-game win streak, having surrendered just 74 points, an average of 12.3 per contest. They have a savvy defensive secondary, Tasker said. One thing they do really well is disrupt receivers in their routes. As receivers its important for us to have our eyes around the contours of the secondary, looking at whos dropping and where. Theyre also very good at getting their hands on you as you release into your route. Tasker said Montreal usually plays zone in passing situations, making it important for Ticats receivers to quickly find the gaps before the pass rush gets to the quarterback. Both Montreal and Hamilton have been good at pressuring the passer, having recorded 49 sacks apiece to stand tied for third overall. Thats the name of the game, Tasker said. If we can protect, things go a lot smoother for the passing game. Hamilton has allowed 63 sacks this season, second-most in the CFL, but also sports the leagues second-ranked aerial attack. And while quarterback Zach Collaros has completed over 65 per cent of his passes, he has also rushed for 293 yards (an average 5.7 yards per rush) with two TDs. Tasker, the son of former NFL special-teams guru Steve Tasker, is Hamiltons receiving leader with 67 catches for 876 yards and five TDs. The CFL sophomore figures to again be a focal point of the Ticats passing game with slotback Andy Fantuz (hamstring) missing a third straight game. As impressive as Montreals defence has been of late, Hamiltons unit has been just as solid at Tim Hortons Field. The Ticats have allowed just 61 total points there, an average of 12.2 a game. Safety Craig Butler gives Hamiltons rabid fans credit for the defences success at home, saying the unit feeds off their energy. Weve got some of the best fans in the league, its great to play behind them, Butler said. Theyre just as excited as we are ... theyre loud and having fun and we just try to take their energy and turn into ours. We feel comfortable and play confident there. We have fun with our crowd. Its a great atmosphere and I think any time you can hype up or build up energy thats going to get — especially the defensive side — going. Added Tasker: I guess its the level of comfort that comes when you are truly, truly at home ... weve played at Guelph and McMaster the last two years but when youre truly at home there is a difference. The fans and positive energy thats flowing, the noise that can get going when were on defence, it all comes together and adds to the feeling and positive energy thats in our favour. The wind can sometimes be a factor, potentially wreaking havoc with the passing and kicking games. Tasker said thats something both teams must account for. Sometimes people refer to it as two-quarter football, he said. When youre going into the wind you want to just have possession of the ball, you want to give them as little time as you can going with the wind. But at the very minimum, when it comes down to the end of the season you want to have control of your own destiny. Its where you want to be as a football player and football team. Wholesale LeBron James Shoes .A. Happ. The Toronto Blue Jays will be looking to improve the starting rotation ahead of next season and pitchers like Happ have a chance to show they belong as the disastrous 2013 campaign draws to a close. LeBron James Shoes From China . - While a fast-paced offence has become more of a fixture in recent years, the San Antonio Spurs can still grind out games when needed. https://www.cheapshoeslebronjames.com/ . The club announced on Wednesday that Malhotra signed a 25-game professional tryout contract. The 33-year-old suffered a serious eye injury when struck by a puck during a game versus Colorado in March of 2011.SAN ANTONIO -- The Spurs rode the wide shoulders of Tim Duncan to victory. The Mavericks were not going to let San Antonio beat them with 3-pointers, and they did not want Tony Parker using the lane as his personal playground. So the veteran Duncan overcame a brief injury scare to score 27 points. The Spurs held Dallas to one field goal in the final seven minutes to rally for a 90-85 win Sunday in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series. The Mavericks also went scoreless for 5 1/2 minutes during that stretch, their lone field goal coming with less than a second remaining. San Antonio won despite going 3 for 17 on 3-pointers and getting only 23 points from its normally potent bench. "We got killed on 3s in the first four outings this year," Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki said. "It was no secret; we stayed home a little more on 3-point shooters, but youve got to give them something, and Duncan in there is obviously still solid." Duncan scored nine points on 4-for-5 shooting from the paint in the final quarter to help the Spurs overcome a 10-point deficit. "Timmy, hes not going to score 24 a game or anything like that," San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said. "Hes the base from which everything else occurs, whether hes scoring or not. It just gives us a comfort level and a point from which to operate. He plays (defence), rebounds, scores here and there. He just does his job." Parker had 21 points, and Manu Ginobili added 17. Kawhi Leonard had 11 points and 10 rebounds and Tiago Splitter pulled down 11 rebounds for top-seeded San Antonio, which has won 10 straight against Dallas. Devin Harris scored 19 points for the Mavericks, who nearly pulled off a huge upset. The Spurs had insisted that what happens in the regular season doesnt matter, and they were proven right for much of the game -- much to the home fans dismay. Absent were the crisp passing, aggressive defence, bench scoring and 3-point shooting that made for the leagues best record. "Its always tough to change gears from the regular season to the playoffs when youre preparing for a team and theyre preparing for you specifically," Duncan said. San Antonio returned to its winning formula over the final seven minutes, taking an 86-81 lead with a 15-0 run. Splitteer tied the game with five minutes remaining, rolling to the basket off a screen for an easy layup off a pass from Parker. LeBron James Shoes For Sale. The All-Star point guard then drove the lane for a layup and drained a 13-foot jumper, which he punctuated with a loud scream after Dallas called timeout with 2:45 to go. "I was able to push the ball and get some easy baskets," Parker said. "It got our confidence going, so once again defensively, the stops that we made helped us offensively." Dallas had taken an 81-71 lead when Brandan Wright completed a three-point play with 7:45 remaining. The Mavericks proceeded to miss their next 12 shots and committed three turnovers. "Defensively, we started making stops," Ginobili said. "We were at a point where they were getting to the rim. They were making shots and nothing seemed to work for brief periods. There was a point where we were down 10 where we made a couple of steals. We ran, we got fouled, we got a couple of easy buckets, and that changed our mentality." Nowitzki, who finished with 11 points, was 2 for 6 from the field in the final quarter. The veteran forward was closely defended by Splitter. "Theyre not necessarily unbelievably athletic and long, but they are very smart," Nowitzki said. "What they want to do defensively is take you out of your comfort zone." Duncan, wearing a heavy brace on his left knee, walked off the court gingerly with 3:24 remaining in the third quarter after banging knees with Monta Ellis. He did not get up as he customarily does during a timeout to greet his teammates. Duncan later left the court, followed closely by trainer Will Sevening and team doctor David Schmidt, returning a minute later limping slightly less, and he played big down the stretch. "I knew as soon as I felt it," Duncan said. "My leg just kind of went numb, so I knew it was hopefully just a charley horse. I knew I needed just a couple of minutes just for the feeling to come back and I would be fine." NOTES: Referee Joey Crawford screamed twice at a pair of scoring officials during a timeout, telling them at one point to do their jobs. Crawford, who once ejected Duncan for laughing from the bench during a game against the Mavericks, was booed regularly by the fans. ' ' '