put up big numbers when Northern Arizona drops to competition its level.Arizona State: The Sun Devils and their young quarterback finally found their rhythm late in the third quarter to give them a boost of confi

In October, espnWs weekly essay series will focus on heroes.Even as a high school athlete, my father, Hannibal Ware, was known for his long shooting range. He and his youngest brother, James, were a fearless duo on the court. In Lexington, Kentucky, the two lanky teenagers were known as the Ware boys.In 1968, my father played collegiate hoops at the University of the Virgin Islands. When I was a kid in grade school, he loved telling me stories about those days as a young hoops star. An opponent once yelled out, Dont let the Yankee shoot! according to my father.My father could tell a story better than anyone I have ever met. And to this day, I can still see his lean brown form standing in my grandmothers living room reenacting his winning jump shot.I remember watching him stand behind the 3-point line on our neighborhood basketball court. He made so many baskets in a row, it felt like magic. He loved perfecting his basketball skills.He never made it to the pros, but he imparted his basketball knowledge to my sister, Saneda, and me. Be aggressive when going inside, he told me. Dont play with fear.In high school, I wore a jersey emblazoned with his number -- 14. Maybe, I thought, it would bring me luck. Or maybe I was just proud to wear the same number as a superstar. I was a pretty good player. Like him, I had a consistent jump shot of my own and was one of the star players on the Bryan Station Middle Schools Bearcats. I am very proud that both my father and I were part of teams that won championships for Bryan Station.Even though I chose not to continue my basketball career after middle school, I still feel proud knowing that I shared such an important interest with him. Basketball will always remind me of the special moments that connected us.But in my second year of college, I received a terrible shock. My father was diagnosed with throat cancer. What started off as a tiny bump on his neck gradually grew into a large tumor.My father was stubborn and unwilling to go for a checkup. My grandmother, sister and I watched as he slowly deteriorated. He began to forget little things. He was aware of his decline. I could see the fear on my fathers face at times. It was difficult watching my?hero meet his kryptonite. He spoke as if he would beat cancer, but deep down I believe he knew his fate.During the last stages of his illness, I dropped out of school. The stress of witnessing my fathers illness left me in a dark place. I remember lying to my uncle about still being enrolled at the University of Kentucky. I was too ashamed to say that I had failed.I watched my Dad -- my first love -- wither away in a nursing home. I saw the light fading from his large almond eyes and I knew that he was leaving me. He would stare off into space, listening to R&B. In his last days he seemed to find some peace listening to slow music. I can still see him breathing, gasping for air.My life will forever be changed by these events. I will always have the special moments we shared to bring me joy. His love for his children and basketball taught me compassion and commitment. Eventually, I found the strength to go back to school and graduate with a masters degree in social work.So Daddy, thank you for the wonderful moments we shared. Thank you for your kind heart and your dedication to others. Thank you for being my first love and my first encounter with a real-life superhero.Ebonie Ware is a writer based in Kentucky. She started the blog Ware Im Coming From.?Follow her on Instagram?for?inspirational nuggets.?Zapatillas España . It was just business as usual for the Thunder at home. Durant scored 32 points and the Thunder beat the Bulls 107-95 on Thursday night for their eighth straight win. Yeezy Mujer Baratas . -- Patrick Reed got an early start in golf. https://www.zapatillasbaratasspain.es/zapatillas-nike-baratas-spain-outlet-online-d988.html . -- On the field, it was business as usual for Jameis Winston and No. Zapatillas Baratas Hombre . Jane Virtanen scored two, and Alex Roach and Elliott Peterson rounded out the offence for the Hitmen (40-15-6). Brady Brassart chipped in with three assists. Colton McCarthy scored twice, Brayden Point had a goal and two assists, and Jack Rodewald also scored for the Warriors (15-35-9), who were 2 for 5 on the power play. Air Max Mujer Baratas . The (11-11-4) Jets are seventh in the Central Division with 26 points. Fifth place Dallas and sixth-seeded Nashville also have 26 points, but the Stars have three games in hand on Winnipeg while Nashville has two.TEMPE, Ariz. -- Arizona State and its new quarterback turned an uncomfortably close game into a fourth-quarter blowout.Manny Wilkins passed for 180 yards, ran for 89 and a touchdown and even hurdled a would-be tackler in his first college start and the Sun Devils pulled away for a 44-13 victory over FCS foe Northern Arizona on Saturday night.Arizona State led just 10-6 before scoring on its final seven possessions.The second half was about more what I expected, Sun Devils coach Todd Graham said, and the first half was nerve-wracking. We expected to score a lot more points in the first half than we did.They scored 24 points in the fourth quarter.Well be fine, Wilkins said. I take complete accountability for that (the slow start) and next week well get rolling faster.Freshman NKeal Harry took a lateral from Wilkins and raced 34 yards for a touchdown and Kalen Ballage ran 30 yards for a score in the outburst.Northern Arizonas Case Cookus completed 23 of 33 passes for 369 yards, including an 87-yard touchdown to Elijah Marks. Marks had eight catches for 174 yards.Wilkins, a redshirt sophomore who was named the starter by coach Todd Graham on Friday, completed 20 of 27 passes with one interception.He had some things you see a first-time starter do, Graham said, and then he did some great things.Zane Gonzalez kicked three field goals, including a career-long 53-yarder, for the Sun Devils, who havent lost to the Lumberjacks since 1938.At times, we showed ourselves to be very capable; a team that can play at a high tempo, NAU coach Jerome Souers said. But what Im concerned about mostly is our ability to deal with adversity that came in the second half.The game looked like an Arizona State romp at the start.Ballage returned the opening kickoff 27 yards and the Sun Devils went 44 yards on seven consecutive running plays with Wilkins running 13 for the touchdown.The Lumberjacks took the second-half kickoff, with Cookus completing passes of 39, 14 and 12 yards, and advanced to the Sun Devils 1-inch line. But a false start penalty and delay of game pushed them back and Haacks 23-yard field goal cut Arizona Staates lead to 10-6.ddddddddddddGonzalezs 53-yarder boosted the ASU advantage to 13-6 with 7:35 left in the third quarter.Arizona State linebacker Marcus Ball was tossed from the game after he was called for targeting in a helmet-to-helmet hit with NAU receiver Jabril Taylor. Ball must sit out the first half of the Sun Devils game against Texas Tech next Saturday. Graham said linebacker Salamo Fiso and defensive lineman Ami Latu didnt play because of disciplinary reasons.STRANGE PLAYSWhen Wilkins took off up the middle in the second quarter he literally hurdled North Arizonas Keith Graham. The run helped set up Gonzalezs 33-yard field goal.And as the first half ended, Cookus let it fly in a `Hail Mary under extreme pressure. The Sun Devils Kareem Orr tried to catch it, but it bounced off his chest and into the hands of Butler at about the 10-yard line and he took off toward the end zone. But his toe barely went out of bounds at the Sun Devils 2-yard line and the half ended.Northern Arizona had the ball at the end only because of another bizarre occurrence. Lumberjacks punter Dylan Kegans dropped the snap and then kicked the ball 13 yards downfield, where it bounced off the helmet of a Sun Devil and into the arms of Northern Arizonas Corbin Jountti for a first down.THE TAKEAWAYNorthern Arizona: The Lumberjacks are picked to win the Big Sky and they stayed with the Sun Devils most of the night. Cookus, a sophomore, looks to put up big numbers when Northern Arizona drops to competition its level.Arizona State: The Sun Devils and their young quarterback finally found their rhythm late in the third quarter to give them a boost of confidence with the Red Raiders coming to town next week.UP NEXTNorthern Arizona drops down considerably in the level of competition when the Lumberjacks travel to Western Illinois next Saturday.Arizona State needed their late surge to gain some confidence because the Sun Devils face a much sterner test when they are host to Texas Tech next Saturday. ' ' '