Shoutbox » Pekovic and Martin combined for 39 poi

SAN FRANCISCO - Jonathan Martin is back on the Stanford campus hanging out and working out with old college pals turned successful pros, Andrew Luck and Richard Sherman. He has returned to his Bay Area comfort zone, far from South Florida and his short-lived, tumultuous tenure with the Dolphins. Now, hes here to stay. Martin is the newest member of the San Francisco 49ers, and hes thrilled for a fresh start to keep playing football. And for anyone who questions why the offensive lineman couldnt tough things out through a bullying scandal in Miami, hes unconcerned. "You could say this or that could have gone differently. Hindsight is 20-20," Martin said Thursday upon passing a physical. "My focus is 100 per cent on the future, moving forward." In recent months, Martin has learned to ignore all the negative chatter and surround himself with those who have been so supportive along the way. Already, starting 49ers offensive linemen Joe Staley and Anthony Davis have reached out. "I can tell already that Im going to get along just great with those guys," Martin said. "Ive felt a warm welcome from the entire 49ers community, fan base, coaching staff, everybody. Im just looking forward to the future and getting back to playing football." Martins trade from the Dolphins to the Niners became official Thursday. It reunites him with his college coach, Jim Harbaugh. The teams first announced the move Tuesday night for Martin, who left the Dolphins last fall after accusing teammate Richie Incognito of bullying in a scandal that overshadowed the franchises 8-8 season. An investigation for the NFL determined last month that Incognito and two other offensive linemen engaged in persistent harassment of Martin, another offensive lineman and an assistant trainer. After Martins departure from the Dolphins in late October, he underwent counselling for emotional issues. Incognito was suspended for the final eight games. "Any time we acquire a player we give him a clean slate, along with every opportunity to demonstrate his value to our organization, both on the field and in the community," 49ers general manager Trent Baalke said. "It will be no different in Jonathans case. As a former Stanford student-athlete, we are very familiar with Jonathan and look forward to working with him." Harbaugh has supported Martin all along, from his early college days at Stanford to the offensive linemans departure from the Dolphins, and even in a formal NFL investigation into the situation in Miami. Harbaugh spoke publicly about Martin in November and referred to him as a "personal friend." "Hes a stand-up guy. It means a lot when somebody with that much credibility has your back," Martin said. "His enthusiasm is infectious. You can see it at every level of the organization. It rubs off on everybody. Just to be around a winning atmosphere, a coach thats focused on winning, its really the best situation I could have asked for." Now, these two will begin the process of getting Martin up to speed in a hurry this off-season. Harbaugh has said hes not concerned because it should be a smooth transition. Martin already knows many of the coaches who came from Stanford when Harbaugh was hired in January 2011. Harbaugh has credited Martin for being a "very intelligent football player" who has familiarity with the Niners system. Martin noted he never considered retiring, saying: "That didnt even cross my mind at any point. Im a football player, Ive been a football player my whole life." "The way Im approaching it, I have to earn my spot on this team, Im a new guy in the locker room," Martin said. "Its a blank slate for me. Im looking forward to revitalizing my career, getting back to playing. I want to do whatever I can to contribute to this O-line. Its one of the best O-lines in football already." The 24-year-old Martin wasnt expected to return to Miami, and owner Stephen Ross made it known in January that the 2012 second-round pick would likely be gone. The investigation found a pattern of harassment on the Dolphins, with Martin the primary target of vicious taunts and racist insults that occurred almost daily. The report said teammates threatened to rape Martins sister, called him a long list of slurs and bullied him for not being "black enough." Martin is black and Incognito is white. Now, Martin can truly move forward in a new jersey, and perhaps in a new number — even in a new stadium. The 49ers will play their first season in Levis Stadium at team headquarters this year. Martin said they have always had a great relationship, from the days Harbaugh recruited him to Stanford and coached him for three years with the Cardinal. "The goal for this transaction is a win-win," Harbaugh said. Martin, too, considers this a perfect fit, with the opportunity to chase a championship an added bonus. "Absolutely," Martin said. "I think it worked out great, once again playing for Coach Harbaugh, once again in the Bay Area. Playing for a winning franchise, a team thats had a lot of recent success. Hopefully Ill be able to contribute to further success with this team." Cheap Adidas Kings Jerseys . Consider it received. Attacking on offence early and often, the Penguins topped the Columbus Blue Jackets 3-1 on Saturday night as Jussi Jokinen scored the go-ahead goal in the third period to help give Pittsburgh a 3-2 lead in the Eastern Conference playoff series. Cheap Kings Jerseys China . Thats 14 consecutive losses to the two-time defending champs, and most of them were over before they even began. Result notwithstanding, Sundays game had a very different feel to it. http://www.cheaplosangeleskingsjerseys.com/ . Others describe it as taking the parrot for a walk. Wholesale Kings Jerseys . Nowitzki scored 28 points, Harris had a season-high 14 for the second straight game and the Dallas Mavericks beat the Detroit Pistons 116-106 Sunday night. Cheap Adidas NHL Jerseys . - The Clippers have signed guard Dahntay Jones to a second 10-day contract.MINNEAPOLIS -- The struggling Minnesota Timberwolves finally got to blow off some steam. Nikola Pekovic had 27 points and 14 rebounds in three quarters and the Timberwolves blasted the Utah Jazz, 98-72 on Saturday night. Kevin Love had 18 points, 13 rebounds and five assists, and Kevin Martin scored 20 points to help the Wolves snap a three-game losing streak that included losses to Sacramento and Toronto. The Wolves scored 28 points off 16 Utah turnovers and outscored the Jazz 50-18 in the paint for a much-needed blowout. Alec Burks scored 18 points for the Jazz, who trailed by as many as 36 points and shot 28.8 per cent, the worst shooting night in franchise history. Derrick Favours had eight points and 10 boards, but was just 3 for 10 from the field. The Timberwolves hit a season-low three games under .500 with a dispiriting loss in Toronto on Friday night, and a season that started with playoff aspirations was threatening to be done in by a lack of team chemistry and an inability to win close games. They are 0-11 this season in games decided by four points or less, but also lead the league in games in which theyve led by at least 30 points (10). The Jazz were playing again without leading scorer Gordon Hayward, who was out with a strained left hip flexor. And theyve never missed him more. The Jazz missed 20 of their first 26 shots against the team with the worst field goal percentage defence in the league. With just under nine minutes to play in the first half, Favours went up for a dunk but didnt make it high enough and was rejected by the rim. He grabbed the ball, wentt straight up again, and missed another dunk off the back iron.dddddddddddd Incredibly, it only got worse from there. The Jazz made two field goals in the entirety of their nine-point second quarter and went into halftime trailing by 28 points. They went 8 for 39 in the first two quarters, just 20.5 per cent, and managed a season-low 23 points, the second-lowest scoring half for a Wolves opponent in franchise history. How bad was it? Pekovic and Martin combined for 39 points midway through the third quarter. The Jazz had 37. The Timberwolves werent exactly on fire, either. They shot 44 per cent in the first half and missed eight of 19 free throws. But if any team needed a gimme like this one, it was the Wolves. They had lost four of their previous five games to fall to 11th in the Western Conference and were fighting discord in the locker room and plummeting confidence on the court. That all changed on Saturday night, with Love and Pekovic rough-housing on the sideline, Martin playing with an aggression that hasnt been seen for a few weeks and Ricky Rubio playing with a hop in his step and a smile on his face for the first time in a month. Rubio had six points, nine assists and eight rebounds in 26 minutes. Promising rookie Trey Burke had just nine points on 2-for-10 shooting for Utah. NOTES: The Jazzs previous franchise low for field goal percentage was 29.3 per cent against New York on Nov. 14, 2005. ... Love hit a 3-pointer in the first quarter that moved him past Wally Szczerbiak for second on the franchises career list. ... The teams meet again in Utah on Tuesday. ' ' '