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MALABO -- Tournament favourite Ivory Coast was grouped with Sudan, Burkina Faso and Angola in Saturdays draw for next years African Cup of Nations. cheap nfl jerseys . World Cup quarterfinalist Ghana was drawn alongside Cup of Nations newcomer Botswana, Mali and Guinea for the 16-team African championship in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea, which kicks off on Jan. 21. Ivory Coast and Ghana avoided the likes of Senegal, Morocco and Tunisia in a kind draw for the two main contenders. In Group A, co-host Equatorial Guinea will open the tournament in Bata on its Cup of Nations debut against surprise qualifier Libya. Senegal and Zambia make up the group. Gabon will face Niger -- another first-time qualifier -- and North African hopes Morocco and Tunisia in Group C. Morocco and Tunisia open their campaigns against each other on Jan. 23. In the absence of three-time defending champion Egypt and former winners Cameroon, Nigeria and South Africa -- who all failed to qualify -- top-ranked African team Ivory Coast and Ghana are tipped to meet in the Feb. 12 final in the Gabon capital Libreville. Ivory Coast will start its quest for a second African title, and first since 1992, against Sudan in Group B. Ghana will play Botswana first up in Group D. Equatorial Guinea plays Libya and Senegal faces Zambia in the opening two games of the tournament, which are set to be played back-to-back at the same stadium on Jan. 21. The top two teams from each group will qualify for the quarterfinals, with the tournament played across four cities: Bata and Malabo in Equatorial Guinea and Libreville and Franceville in Gabon. Ghana is the most successful team at the 2012 edition with four Cup of Nations crowns. Tunisia, Sudan, Ivory Coast and Morocco have all won the competition once. Burkina Fasos place at the tournament was confirmed by the Confederation of African Football after the ruling body rejected an appeal by Namibia over an ineligible player in the Burkinabe squad. CAF said the protest from the Namibians -- who lost out to Burkina Faso in qualifying -- did not follow correct procedure and was therefore rejected. President Ali Bongo of Gabon and President Teodoro Obiang Nguema of Equatorial Guinea attended Saturdays draw, which was overseen by CAF President Issa Hayatou. Group A: Equatorial Guinea, Libya, Senegal, Zambia Group B: Ivory Coast, Sudan, Burkina Faso, Angola Group C: Gabon, Niger, Morocco, Tunisia Group D: Ghana, Botswana, Mali, Guinea The draw Saturday for the 2012 African Cup of Nations finals went as follows: wholesale nfl jerseys . A few changes have been made this year, as RDS will no longer be producing it. Instead, the Canadiens have hired their own team of creative masterminds to produce the reality series. cheap jerseys from china . Though the Jets have not confirmed any updates to Scheifeles status, TSN Hockey Analyst Aaron Ward says early reports indicate he suffered an MCL injury and will likely out 6-8 weeks.MIAMI -- LeBron James spoke with Mike Bibby after a game last week, and the NBAs two-time reigning MVP is keeping the exact details of that chat private. This much is known: It was a recruiting pitch. "I gave him the eye," James said. "And I guess the eye worked." By Wednesday night, James and the Heat will be able to say that with certainty. The Heat cleared a roster spot Tuesday by parting ways with Carlos Arroyo, and although the team made no formal pronouncements because of NBA rules, several players -- James, Dwyane Wade and Mario Chalmers among them -- said they will have Bibby aboard soon. Bibby is expected to be in South Florida on Wednesday, will likely participate in Thursday mornings shootaround practice and should be in uniform when the Heat play the Orlando Magic that night. "I think its a big thing for us," said Heat guard Eddie House, Bibbys brother-in-law. "Hes going to do a lot of things that can help LeBron, Dwyane and everyone else around here." Miami announced the Arroyo move in time for the veteran guard to sign with another team and be eligible for its post-season roster. "This was a very difficult decision to make because Carlos has done a great job for this team and this organization," Heat President Pat Riley said. "He is truly a first-class individual and professional. "We wish him nothing but the best." Bibby was traded by Atlanta to Washington last week. He was in Miami on Friday for his first -- and ultimately, next-to-last -- game with the Wizards, saying he was aware of buyout rumblings but did not know what the future held. "I cant control it," Bibby said. The Wizards and Bibby reached a buyout agreement Monday, and he didnt take long to pick his next destination. It means the Heat, at a crucial time of the season, will be giving a new point guard on-the-fly training about how they play the game. "Its easier with veteran players with high IQs and if you have a definitive system and philosophy," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "Which we do." Since Bibby wont be a Heat player until Wednesday, Spoelstra could not speak about him specifically. James could. "Hes going to help us out tremendously," James said. The Heat had conversations with other pllayers who hit the market through buyouts, including Troy Murphy, who is expected to sign Wednesday with Boston. jerseys from china. If Murphy picked Miami, the Heat would have likely waived little-used big man Jamaal Magloire of Toronto to create another roster spot. Magloire was relieved to be in practice Tuesday. "I would have been disappointed otherwise," Magloire said. Spoelstra said he cannot wait for the speculating about whatll happen with Miamis roster to end. "Once you get past this date, you can focus on absolutes -- who you have and who you dont have," Spoelstra said. "And were close. ... I feel that our team is good enough." Miami (43-17) entered play Tuesday one game behind Boston (43-15) and a game ahead of Chicago (41-17) in the race for the top spot in the Eastern Conference. Bibby averaged 9.4 points and 3.6 assists as a starter with Atlanta this season, his 13th in the league. The Heat would become his fifth NBA team, a list also including Vancouver, Sacramento, the Hawks and the Wizards, with whom he shot 1-for-9 in two games after the trade that he said caught him by surprise last week. Hes also appeared and started in 80 post-season games, which is more than any other current Heat player. James and Zydrunas Ilgauskas have been in 71 playoff games, all during their time in Cleveland together. "Certain moves are surprising and unexpected," Wade said. "The Mike Bibby (trade) was probably the most surprising, unexpected move. "A lot of people think it was the Kendrick Perkins move (from Boston to Oklahoma City), but I think it was Mike Bibby. No one expected that. He became available and when opportunities present themselves youve got to jump on them." Arroyo was not at practice and did not immediately respond to a text message. He started 42 games for Miami this season and played in seven others, but logged only 27 minutes of court time since Jan. 30 -- more than half of that coming in a Feb. 16 game at Toronto. "Its never easy," Wade said. "Its always bittersweet, especially in this situation for Carlos. "You look at it, he was doing a great job starting, really didnt do anything wrong. Its very unfortunate. The one thing we can do is hope that he ends up in a good situation." cheap nfl jerseys ' ' ' |
