Conference lead on September 8, all the way to a final game loss

The 2013 season looked like it was going to be a great story for the Montreal Impact. Samir Nasri . They entered their second season as a member of Major League Soccer and were on pace to easily qualify for the playoffs and show impressive franchise growth. In September the teams form took a turn for the worse as they were only able to win twice and pick up a draw from their final nine games.  Their slide took them from a share of the Eastern Conference lead on September 8, all the way to a final game loss to Toronto FC that forced them into a one-game elimination playoff matchup in Houston against the Dynamo. Much the way their regular season ended, the trip to Texas was a disaster for the Impact. Not only were they beaten 3-0 by the Dynamo thanks to two first-half goals and a second-half insurance marker, they completely lost their composure in the waning minutes of the game. Defender Nelson Rivas was the first to go, as he picked up his second yellow card in the 72nd minute. In the final minute of the match, defender Andres Romero and forward Marco Di Vaio were both shown red cards for their parts in a skirmish that erupted in the corner near the Impact goal. The latter two players were suspended for two extra games in addition to the one they already received for the red cards. The team and head coach Marco Schallibaum were also fined for repeated mass confrontation violations. Now from the ashes of the Impacts burned down season comes one final spark in the form of a rumour.  Sports Illustrateds Grant Wahl is reporting that just-retired Impact defender Alessandro Nesta will be replacing Schallibaum as head coach of the team. There is precedent for such a move, as early in the year Toronto FC made retiring Queens Park Rangers defender Ryan Nelsen - who had no coaching experience - their new head coach. If the Impact pull the trigger, Nesta will become their third head coach in three seasons since the club joined MLS. Our questions to you are, where should the Montreal Impact go from here? Do you take a positive or negative view of the 2013 season? And if Schallibaum is on his way out, would you like to see Nesta or a more experienced coach hired to fill the position? As always, its Your! Call. Frank Lampard Jersey .com) - Top-seeded former winner Novak Djokovic, who survived an injury scare, and defending champion Andy Murray highlighted Fridays third-round winners at Wimbledon. James Milner . The German canoeist says she is suffering from a heart muscle inflammation and has been told by doctors that she cannot compete.INDIANAPOLIS -- Adreian Payne scored 18 points and Gary Harris and Branden Dawson added 15 each to lead No. 22 Michigan State to its second Big Ten tournament title in three years with a 69-55 upset of No. 8 Michigan on Sunday. The third-seeded Spartans (26-8) are getting healthy and will have some momentum entering the NCAA tournament with four wins in five games. Top-seeded Michigan (25-8) was led by Big Ten player of the year Nik Stauskas with 17 points and Derrick Walton Jr. had 11, but the Big Ten regular season champs had their seven-game winning streak come to an end. It was never really close. Michigan State took control with an early 12-0 run, led 38-29 at halftime and opened the second half with an 8-0 spurt to make it 46-29. Michigan never got closer than 10 points again. The Spartans had lost their previous two meetings with Michigan this season but werent about to lose again Sunday. For the first time all season, Michigan State started the same five players for a fifth straight game. Harris, who hurt his left shoulder early in the second half, returned later. Harris, an Indiana native who never got to play for a state basketball title at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, took advantage of this opportunity. He scored 13 of his 15 points in the first half. Dawson, another Indiana native who was named the tournaments Most Outstanding Player, scored 10 of his 15 points in the seccond half. Vincent Kompany Manchester City Jersey. Michigan State has four tournament titles since the Big Ten started the event in 1998. Michigan, meanwhile, will be waiting to see if this ugly loss could cost it a No. 1 seed in next weeks NCAA tournament. The Wolverines, who narrowly escaped with wins in the quarterfinals and semifinals, were not their usually strong shooting selves as they played for the third time in three days. They avoided matching their season-low point total when Zak Irvin hit a 3 with 15.9 seconds to go and their shooting percentage (31.5) nearly matched a season low, too. Michigan shot 31.1 per cent from the field in a 63-61 loss to Charlotte on Nov. 24. And they were outrebounded 38-28. Michigans problems started early. The Spartans went on a 12-0 run to take a 16-9 lead -- and never gave it up. They led by as much as 25-14 in the first half, getting Michigans top two big men -- Jordan Morgan and Jon Horford -- into early foul trouble. Coach John Beilein even was called for a technical foul midway through a dreadful half. Harris finished it off emphatically by taking a pass at midcourt and driving right through Michigans defence for a one-handed dunk to make it 38-29. Things didnt get any better for Michigan in the second half. Michigan State scored the first eight points to make it 46-29, then closed it out with a late 10-4 run that extended the lead to 69-52. ' ' '