field for nine points and finished with a game-high four assists

Regardless the sport, there are those within their field that stand above all others, kings of their mountain.Jordan, Gretzky, Ruth and Brady are names synonymous with greatness. Each demonstrated perfection, they are athletic aristocrats, members of a noble fraternity of a chosen few who perform at a level so high it becomes the measure in their discipline for decades.With his seventh title in 11 seasons, Jimmie Johnson has become the latest member of this exclusive group.Im often asked how can one driver win so often? Is it the car, the engine, the crew? Its all those things, but its primarily the individual behind the steering wheel.The answer to the question what makes great is this: The ability to extract more when it matters most under the most adverse or demanding circumstances.Thats how I would describe watching Jimmie Johnson at Homestead when he demonstrated that to perfection.Every great athlete obeys their sports fundamentals -- they become the foundation for your career, they ultimately support prosperity and longevity.In auto racing, the fundamentals are car control, evaluating risk vs. reward, and anticipating opportunity and capitalizing on it.The fundamentals keep you balanced, relevant during a grueling 10-month season.Desire, commitment, determination and composure are what are needed to finish the job. Separate yourself from all others, close the deal.Car control is how well, and how quickly, you process and react to your cars personality against the limits of the race track, or the obstructions created from cars around you.Solid car control doesnt determine if you win or lose, but it certainly increases your chances.Nobody does it better than Jimmie Johnson. He demonstrated it to perfection in the final two laps of the championship race.Watch it. Watch it again and again if you have to. Jimmie drove two of the best laps of his life to capture a seventh title.What did he do?He arced the car into the turn at the precise angle, allowing speed to remain elevated, but controlled enough to maintain the perfect line to the apron. At center corner, he used enough steering input, combined with acceleration, to lean the car onto the right-rear tire -- too aggressive and his car slides toward the wall, forcing his right foot off the gas. Too cautious and he would have surrendered two or three hundred RPM from his exit and would have passed no one. He would have force himself from playing offense to playing defense, preoccupied with the rearview mirror.Going fast is dependent on your body identifying forces of the car, delivering the info to your brain, it being processed and fed to your hands, feet and eyes.Its a process that follows a sequence, the sequence can be sped up or slowed down depending on the individual. The best make it look and feel instinctive, without thought. Its why a chosen few are fast, very fast -- no matter where they compete.You have to anticipate. The final restart is a perfect illustration of this. Jimmie timed it perfectly, did not spin the rear tires, executed two precise shifts and captured the lead against a superior car off the exit of Turn 2.Anticipating a restart is predicated once again on your senses: Your peripheral vision acting like radar for any sudden appearance or acceleration; sound, because you are locked in to the sound of the cars exhaust restarting next to you; and the feel you have of the rear tires struggling between creating thrust in your car vs. breaking free of the racing surface. Its a beautiful thing when done perfectly, and ugly as hell otherwise.Great drivers identify the limit of their car, the track, their talent and operate within a fraction of that edge all race long. They also drive 100 percent while giving the clear succinct definition of their cars balance to their team.Few drivers can do this.Most operate at 95 percent when evaluating their cars balance, showing an inability to drive on the extreme edge and evaluate all the factors simultaneously.Only a few drivers in my lifetime demonstrated the ability to do it. Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt are the obvious ones. Others could do it at particular tracks. I had the gift at Martinsville. Dale Earnhardt Jr. at Daytona and Talladega. AJ Allmendinger at Watkins GlenAll drivers have their strengths, but I can count on only one hand the drivers who could do it every week, at every kind of track.Jimmie Johnson is one of them.Conditioning? Drivers fail most often under these two scenarios.First, when they become distracted; second, when they become tired. Jimmie can fall victim to distraction, its evident the few times a year he and crew chief Chad Knaus swap audio jabs at 150 mph. But he wont tire, because he trains and he prepares, harder than anyone I know. Its an extension of his commitment to being the best.Its not just achieving a superior physical fitness, its about obtaining a superior mental fitness. Jimmie subscribes and adheres to it, beyond what others could imagine.The Bottom LineGood drivers win in great cars. Great drivers win in good cars.The latter is what Jimmie Johnson did Sunday.I understand all the things required to perform and compete as a race-car driver. I understand the criteria for winning races.What I dont completely understand is this: How has Jimmie done it so damned well, so often, for so long and so much better than everyone else? John Henson Cavaliers Jersey .C. -- Glenn Howard needed an extra end to move into the Masters Grand Slam of Curling final. Kevin Porter Cavaliers Jersey . Boucher previously coached the Tampa Bay Lightning and had a 97-78-20 record over two-plus seasons. 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TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- Braxton Key scored a game-high 14 points and grabbed six rebounds and Alabama defeated Charleston Southern 76-46 on Tuesday night.Making just his second career start, Keys first two 3-pointers sparked a 10-0 run for the Crimson Tide (4-2). Alabama quickly took control of the game and the Buccaneers (3-3) trailed by at least 10 points for the final 32 minutes of the game.Braxton did a nice job of catching the ball and getting in the right position, Alabama coach Avery Johnson said.Johnson felt his team did a good job cleaning up mistakes he emphasized all week in practice. After struggling at times this season with early foul trouble, the Crimson Tide didnt commit a foul in the first 10 minutes of the first half.Avery Johnson Jr. and ArMond Davis also finished in double figures for the Crimson Tide with 11 and 10 points, respectively. The Alabama bench scored 46 points to nearly match an opponent for the second time this season.Its always a team effort, Johnson, Jr. said. The second group just tries to come in and give, like, a spark.Armel Potter led the Buccaneers in points (12) and assists (3).Dazon Ingram added a 3-pointer and a layup to score the first five points in the second half to spark Alabama..dddddddddddd Ingram was 4 of 6 from the field for nine points and finished with a game-high four assists while turning the ball over just once.Im proud of the way the guys responded after the way we played on this last road trip and the way we practiced two days ago -- they definitely turned it around tonight, Johnson said.BIG PICTUREAlabama: The Crimson Tide fell to 2016 NCAA Tournament team Dayton 77-72 and faces fellow tournament teams Texas and Oregon in its next two games.Charleston Southern: The Buccaneers spent the entire 2015-16 campaign below .500, but have yet to fall below that mark this season.UP NEXTAlabama: The Crimson Tide will take on Texas in the teams first true road game Friday.Charleston Southern: The Buccaneers return home to host Abilene Christian Saturday.HE SAID IT:Our centers havent been getting enough dirty rebounds and rebounding out of their zone, Johnson said. Thats more of a will power mindset.STAT OF THE NIGHTAlabama won the turnover battle. The Crimson Tide scored 28 points off 23 Buccaneer turnovers. Charleston Southern scored 13 points off 13 Alabama turnovers. ' ' '