Drugs that are commonly used to prevent osteoporosis may ...

Drugs that are commonly used to prevent osteoporosis may increase the risk of serious inflammatory eye disease in first-time users, found an article in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal). Oral bisphosphonates, the most commonly prescribed class of drugs used to prevent osteoporosis, have been linked to adverse events such as unusual fractures, irregular heartbeat, and esophageal and colon cancer. Some case reports have shown an association between these drugs and anterior uveitis and scleritis, inflammatory eye diseases that can seriously affect vision...

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Rangers clinch top seed in East, sweep Flyers

PHILADELPHIA (AP) ? High above the ice, standing and spread over a couple of sections in the upper deck, fans of the Broadway Blueshirts started chanting, "We're No. 1! We're No. 1! We're No. 1!"

Thanks in large part to a season sweep over the division-rival Flyers, the New York Rangers can call themselves the best team in the East.

Ryan Callahan and Artem Anisimov scored as part of a four-goal first period, and the New York Rangers clinched the No. 1 seed for the first time since 1994 with a 5-3 win over the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday night.

The Rangers are tops in the East for the first time since Mark Messier led them to their last Stanley Cup championship 18 years ago. The Rangers, who lead the overall NHL standings with 109 points, are assured of home-ice advantage until at least the Stanley Cup finals.

The Rangers are on top thanks to a stunning series sweep of the Atlantic Division-rival Flyers. They went 6-0 against Philadelphia for the first time in 40 years.

"It's been a long year for these guys, but they deserve the No. 1 seed," Rangers coach John Tortorella said. "Now, in a couple of days, things will change. But I know our guys are excited for that."

Ryan McDonagh and Brian Boyle also scored to help the Rangers storm to a 4-0 lead. Marian Gaborik added his 41st goal, and Henrik Lundqvist earned his career-best 39th victory.

The Rangers have ridden the All-Star Lundqvist all the way to the top, and he was sensational again in the clincher. It was Rangers defenseman Marc Staal who knocked the puck past him for the first Philadelphia goal. Staal kicked the puck with his left skate under Lundqvist's right leg in the second to make it 4-1. Jakub Voracek got credit for the goal.

Lundqvist solidified his Vezina Trophy credentials with 37 saves in his milestone victory. In the locker room, he had his right arm wrapped up in ice and was hurting. He said he had trouble keeping a hold of his stick late in the game after being struck by a shot late in the second period.

"There were times where I wanted to say, 'I'm outta here.' But I got through it," he said "We'll see how it is in a couple of days, see how it feels. Hopefully, I'll be ready to go, but it was tough."

First place is rare air for a team that has won only two postseason series since 1998. Owner James Dolan made an atypical visit to the postgame news conference in January and proclaimed the Rangers Stanley Cup contenders.

"I think we're pretty close to getting that back," Dolan said of the Stanley Cup.

Opening at home sure helps.

"I love this, what a season," said forward Brad Richards, considered the biggest prize in last summer's free-agent market. "This is a great time of year. Yes, it's going to be a grind, it always is, but we have a good team here, and we have the right pieces in place. It's up to us."

Ilya Bryzgalov was a sparkling 10-2-1 in March and chosen as the NHL's first star, but he sat out the previous three games because of a chip fracture in his right foot. In his return, he had Flyers fans wishing he missed one more.

McDonagh took Gaborik's feed from behind the net and scored his seventh goal of the season 6:25 in. Boyle followed with his 10th, and Anisimov and Callahan both scored on the power play for a 4-0 lead that quieted an oddly sparse crowd for Philadelphia.

The Flyers have trailed at least 2-0 in seven of their last 10 games

"I don't know what we've got to do," Flyers forward Claude Giroux said "Drink one more cup of coffee? I don't know. We've got to find a way to get a better start."

Unable to solve Lundqvist, the Flyers took out their frustrations with their fists. Zac Rinaldo slugged it out with New York's Brandon Prust in a lengthy bout the refs were in no rush to stop. Philadelphia's Jody Shelley used a series of rights to the face to pummel Mike Rupp.

The teams kept up the trash-talking, pushing and poking for the rest of the game.

All the scrapping helped both teams score power-play goals in the final 90 seconds of the second. Gaborik sent a shot from the slot past two defenders for a 5-1 lead. Wayne Simmonds, wearing a visor after he was hit in the face by a puck last week, followed for the Flyers with his 28th goal.

Scott Hartnell added his team-high 37th in the third, but it was too late for Philadelphia.

The Rangers won the first five meetings with Philadelphia by Feb. 11, including a 2-1 victory in the Winter Classic at Citizens Bank Park.

"It feels good to beat them again, and complete the deal," Gaborik said. "With the Winter Classic and all, we've been kind of linked together with them for a while."

Dating to last season, the Rangers have seven straight wins against the Flyers for the first time since Philadelphia went 13 games without a win from November 1971 to December 1973.

Voracek wanted the Flyers to look at the "bright side" if the teams resume their rivalry in the playoffs.

"If they want to beat us, that means they'd have to beat us 10 times this year," he said. "That's a lot of games. I don't think it's going to happen"

The Flyers have been fired up lately. Coach Peter Laviolette was fined $10,000 on Monday after calling out Penguins counterpart Dan Bylsma for sending out his checking line late in Philadelphia's 6-3 win at Pittsburgh on Sunday.

Notes: Flyers C Danny Briere sat out with a back contusion. ... This is the latest the Rangers have been in first place in the East since 1994. ... The Rangers are 21-3-3 when leading after the first period. ... Gaborik has a point in six straight games.

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How Marijuana Can Become Addictive

What happens when something you use occasionally at parties like marijuana begins to take over your entire life?? Most people believe that common recreational drugs like marijuana or alcohol are just harmless fun but the truth is that they can really hurt your body and your mind.? ?The more psychologically dependent you become upon a drug like marijuana the more you damage your mind in ways that you may not be aware of.? For people that are beginning to realize the ways in which their drug use has hurt them they can seek help from marijuana rehab as a solution to finally putting their addiction behind them.? Marijuana use can start out as an occasional thing at parties and quickly grow into a serious problem.

It is quite common for people to experiment with drugs when they are young but studies show that the younger a person is when they begin to use marijuana the more likely they are to develop an addiction.? ?The reasons that many people get involved in marijuana use is that they are trying to escape certain issues in their life or feel that they need to do it to fit in.? Eventually it becomes a habit that they cannot seem to quit and their only solution is marijuana rehab.? As much as people think that marijuana is not a severely addictive drug, there are people everywhere that need a rehabilitation program to end their issues with this drug.?

People may be surprised to think how difficult a problem marijuana addiction can be but it is a drug just like any other and can really get out of hand in certain situations.? The most powerful component of addiction is the psychological need to continue using a drug even when you know that it is harming your life.? Battling the mental addiction is the hardest part of any kind of recovery even if it is not one of the most physically addictive drugs available.?

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Coming up with a new menu is a whopper of a task

In this March 28, 2012 photo, Norman Garcia eats a burger and fries at a Burger King restaurant in Miami. Burger King launches 10 menu items including smoothies, frappes, specialty salads and snack wraps in a star-studded TV ad campaign. It's the biggest menu expansion since the chain opened its doors in 1954. (AP Photo/Luis M. Alvarez)

In this March 28, 2012 photo, Norman Garcia eats a burger and fries at a Burger King restaurant in Miami. Burger King launches 10 menu items including smoothies, frappes, specialty salads and snack wraps in a star-studded TV ad campaign. It's the biggest menu expansion since the chain opened its doors in 1954. (AP Photo/Luis M. Alvarez)

In this March 28, 2012 photo, a patron leaves a Burger King restaurant in Miami. On Monday, April 2, 2012, Burger King launches 10 menu items including smoothies, frappes, specialty salads and snack wraps in a star-studded TV ad campaign. It's the biggest menu expansion since the chain opened its doors in 1954. (AP Photo/Luis M. Alvarez)

In this March 28, 2012 photo, a patron leaves a Burger King restaurant in Miami. On Monday, April 2, 2012, Burger King launches 10 menu items including smoothies, frappes, specialty salads and snack wraps in a star-studded TV ad campaign. It's the biggest menu expansion since the chain opened its doors in 1954. (AP Photo/Luis M. Alvarez)

In this March 28, 2012 photo, Alex Dipasquale, left, selects a soda as his friend Lucas Kitt looks on at a Burger King restaurant in Miami. Burger King launches 10 menu items including smoothies, frappes, specialty salads and snack wraps in a star-studded TV ad campaign. It's the biggest menu expansion since the chain opened its doors in 1954. (AP Photo/Luis M. Alvarez)

In this March 28, 2012 photo, new food items sit on display at a Burger King restaurant in Miami. Burger King launches 10 menu items including smoothies, frappes, specialty salads and snack wraps in a star-studded TV ad campaign. It's the biggest menu expansion since the chain opened its doors in 1954. (AP Photo/Luis M. Alvarez)

MIAMI (AP) ? When Burger King set about to fix its ailing empire, the fast food giant started by scrutinizing everything on the menu ? even the mayonnaise.

A group of Burger King executives and franchisees last year sat through a lengthy presentation complete with charts and graphs on how oils and eggs affect the quality of the spread. A blind taste test of 30 varieties followed. The verdict: They liked the one Burger King was already using.

"That was actually a pretty hard day," recalls John Koch, Burger King's executive chef.

It wasn't the only one. Over the past year, Burger King evaluated all of its ingredients from the bacon to the cheese slices it serves on its chargrilled burgers as part of a yearlong quest to reverse years of slumping sales of its Whoppers and fries. The result: On Monday, it plans to launch a lineup of smoothies, frappe coffees, chicken strips and snack wraps. The 10 new items mark Burger King's biggest menu expansion since the chain opened its doors in 1954.

Burger King's food odyssey shows how grueling it can be for a fast-food company to come up with new menu items ? a process most Americans aren't aware of when they're handed a bag at a drive-thru window. Burger King is the latest chain to revamp its menu as part of the fast-food industry's move away from its nearly single-minded courtship of young men. Once the lifeblood of the industry, the economic downturn hit those junk food fanatics particularly hard. At the same time, Americans' generally have been demanding healthier options.

Burger King has failed to evolve even as competitors have gone after new customers with breakfast items and healthier fare. Last year, Wendy's for the first time edged out Burger King as the nation's No. 2 burger chain behind McDonald's. To stem the decline, Burger King executives last year decided to remodel its aging system of 7,200 stores to make them more contemporary, redesign worker uniforms with aprons so they stay clean and even serve the iconic Whopper in cardboard cartons instead of paper burger wrapping for the first time in more than 20 years. The food, however, is at the heart of its plan.

Consumers have longed for more food options at Burger King, but the revamp is a gamble. The new menu may not go far enough to differentiate Burger King from its competitors.

After all, there are striking similarities between Burger King's new items and the offerings of its much-bigger rival McDonald's. The Golden Arches already rolled out specialty salads in 2003, snack wraps in 2006, premium coffee drinks in 2009, and fruit smoothies in 2010.

"Being an innovator is critical in the fast-food industry," said Darren Tristano, an analyst for food industry researcher Technomic Inc. But in recent years, he said Burger King has been more of a follower.

Burger King executives don't deny that its new items are pretty close to those on McDonald's popular menu. But they say the new menu was created as a result of Burger King's own research.

"Consumers wanted more choices," said Steve Wiborg, president of Burger King's North America operations. "Not just healthy choices, but choices they could get at the competition."

THE RAMP UP

The fast-food industry has undergone a shift in recent years. Just five years ago, the top three fast-food companies were all burger chains. But concerns over obesity have paved the way for competitors like Subway, now the second-biggest chain, and Starbucks, which climbed up the rankings to the No. 3 spot. Smaller players such as Five Guys, which sells made-to-order burgers, are gaining ground too.

McDonald's quickly adapted. The world's biggest burger chain reinvented itself as a hip, healthier place to eat by offering wireless Internet and rolling out a string of hit menu items such as fruit smoothies, iced coffees and oatmeal.

Burger King failed to keep up. Its share of sales among burger chains fell from 17 percent a decade ago to 12 percent last year, according to researcher Technomic. McDonald's share rose from 42 percent to 50 percent.

All Tom McDonald had to do was look at Burger King's competitors to see why sales at the chain were falling. A Burger King franchisee since 1989, McDonald said the chain's menu hadn't changed much over the years.

"We were getting behind with the wraps and salads that were coming on the market," said McDonald, who owns 19 franchises. "We had salads, but they weren't as good as the competition. We focused on burgers maybe longer than we should have."

McDonald said he expressed his concerns at the company's failure to keep up with the times. But the Miami-based chain had gone through a series of owners over the years, and McDonald said he got little response from corporate about addressing the problems.

He said the attitude from the top changed, however, after New York-based private equity firm 3G Capital bought Burger King last year. That's when Burger King assembled a group of 15 key executives, franchisees and suppliers to evaluate the chain's menu, item by item.

The process, which took three months of daylong meetings, was grueling at times. French fries took multiple days, given the various factors like seasoning, oil and frying method. Even the day for soft-serve ice cream, which was rolled out last summer, wasn't as fun as it might sound: A supplier that had 400 vanilla flavors presented the nuances between Madagascar and honey vanilla.

"Trying to come up with the exact intensity of vanilla you need is a little bit daunting," said Koch, Burger King's chef.

Burger King quietly put some changes in place over the past year. The French fries are thicker so they'll stay hot longer. Burgers now come with one slice of cheese instead of two, so it melts more evenly. And naturally-smoked bacon is now cooked at each restaurant. Previously, Burger King had used a pre-cooked variety with a smoked flavor sprayed on.

THE ROLLOUT

Once executives settled on menu items, it was time to go to the masses. Would the new items measure up to those of Burger King's competitors? To find out, the company conducted consumer tests and revised its recipes over months.

Burger King considered making Panini-pressed snack wraps, for example, but tests showed customers wanted something lighter. The wraps it settled on closely resemble the ones offered at McDonald's ? a chicken strip sprinkled with cheese, lettuce and dressing wrapped in a flour tortilla. McDonald's even offers the same flavors ? honey mustard and ranch.

Even seemingly straightforward items had to be reworked over and over. The new "Homestyle Chicken Strips" went through 11 variations before the final version was selected. And it took about seven months and six tries before the company found the right mix of creaminess, iciness and tanginess for its strawberry banana and tropical mango smoothies.

"They didn't rush these products out to market," said McDonald, the Burger King franchisee who regularly eats at competitors to stay on top of what they're doing. He said he's confident the new menu items stack up to rivals. "They got feedback from consumers and reformulated them to get it right."

But food isn't Burger King's only problem. Many of its restaurants are showing signs of aging. So the company decided it wanted to give them a more modern look that mixes leather armchairs, high stools and plastic chairs in warmer lighting. High partitions will create more privacy in some seating areas. The makeover costs an average of more than $275,000 per restaurant.

That presents another challenge: getting buy-in from franchisees, who own 90 percent of the chain's U.S. stores. So the company is offering those who sign up for the remodeling incentives, such as a 50 percent discount on the annual $50,000 franchise fee.

So far, more than 1,000 franchise locations are slated to be updated in the next year. Over the next three years, 2,500 will be remodeled.

Customers will see changes even in stores that aren't remodeled. The drab red, black or blue shirts workers used to wear have been replaced by metal gray shirts and aprons that were designed with the help of employees. Wrappers, cups and bags now have vivid photos of food that were shot by the same photographer responsible for the catalogs of the high-end housewares retailer Williams-Sonoma.

To get the word out about the changes, Burger King is rolling out its biggest marketing campaign ever. TV ads will feature celebrities, including soccer player David Beckham, comedian Jay Leno and actress Salma Hayek. In one spot, R&B singer Mary J. Blige croons the ingredients of the snack wraps.

Whether the star power of the ads, updated stores and the new food on the menu can fix Burger King's troubles remains to be seen. But Alex Macedo, chief marketing officer for Burger King North America, said the chain has a good chance of rebounding because Burger King is a brand everyone knows.

"People love Burger King and really want a reason to come back," he said.

___

Follow Candice Choi at www.twitter.com/candicechoi

Associated Press

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UK warship heads to S. Atlantic amid Falklands tension

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Home Improvement Tips ? Design Like A King

[unable to retrieve full-text content]Lighting is important inside and outside the home. Although it is not easy, that you can not see at night, and around the house. Is it the lack of improvements in the lighting space? Read below to find five suggestions to improve ...

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Get Fit Fast by Jumping Rope:Important ... - Self Improvement

A jump rope is one children?s toy you?ll want to hold onto when you?re grown up. It delivers a great workout even if you?re short on time or on the road. Learn how to get started and stay safe jumping rope.

Perks of Jumping Rope

1. Enjoy the versatility. This piece of workout equipment is cheap, portable and compact. It?ll fit in a small suitcase or a studio apartment and you?ll probably spend less than $20.
2. Get a full body workout. In one session, you can target your upper and lower body. You?ll also improve your cardiovascular fitness. Skipping rope strengthens many muscle groups in your legs, hands, and wrists, which can improve your performance in other sports and help to protect you from injuries.
3. Increase your coordination. Enhance your fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination. You?ll soon be able to do any physical activity better, and practicing this kind of mental concentration also wards off boredom.
4. Burn more calories. A typical adult can burn 750 calories or more per hour during moderately paced jumping, according to the National Institute of Health. That?s more than almost any other activity, including jogging or bicycling!

Safety Precautions

1. Check with your doctor. As a precaution, see your doctor before starting this high intensity activity, especially if you?re over 45 or have been inactive for a while. Skipping rope may also need to be avoided in the early stages of injury until your joints are strong enough to handle the impact.
2. Monitor your heart rate. By understanding your target heart rate, you can burn fat more efficiently and avoid injuries. Your maximum heart rate is calculated by subtracting your age from 220. Aim to stay at about 75 to 85 percent of that figure for the most challenging phase of your workout.
3. Choose the correct rope for you. Look for a rope that?s long enough to nearly reach your armpits when you stand on the middle of it. Many beginners find beaded ropes easier to control but plastic, leather and nylon are also good options.
4. Wear the right shoes. Get shoes that absorb shock. Aerobic or cross training shoes with generous cushioning are ideal.
5. Stick to safe surfaces. Rubber mats and wood are better for absorbing impact than concrete or asphalt. Be cautious about skipping rope on carpets because your shoe could stick and cause an ankle injury.

Important Techniques for Your Jump Rope Workout

1. Start off slowly. Lots of people feel awkward at first. Try rehearsing the movements without a rope or focusing on your arms and feet separately until you?re ready to put it all together.
2. Engage in interval training. Alternate between periods of intense jumping and gentler movements. Increase the intensity gradually as your capacity builds up. When you feel fatigued, try swinging the rope at your side while you keep your feet on the floor or march in place.
3. Warm up and cool down. Include a few minutes before and after every session to warm up and cool down in order to condition your heart and avoid dizziness. Finish up with static stretches to augment your flexibility.
4. Use good technique. Proper form protects your joints by lowering the impact level. Keep the rope close to your feet as you lift yourself only about one to two inches off the floor. Allow just the balls of your feet to make contact with the floor. Elbows are kept close to your sides as you turn the rope with your wrists and forearms.

Jumping rope is a very effective exercise that works out your whole body. Check with your doctor if you have any concerns, and be sure to master proper form so you can protect your joints and heart while you burn away calories.

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Tips For Successful Commercial Real Estate Management | All ...

If you?re new to the commercial real estate investing scene, it can take a while to locate a good type of property to start out with. Read through this article to gain some helpful advice.

Before you can start using the property you?ve purchased, you might need to make some improvements. In some cases, all that is required are simple changes like moving the furniture around or giving the walls a new coat of paint. In many cases, walls must be moved and floor plans rearranged. Be sure to negotiate prior to signing any contract who pays for any improvements; it may be the case that your landlord, if you have one, will contribute a portion of any costs.

If you are in a situation where you have to choose between two attractive commercial properties, remember that size matters. Regardless of whether the property you decide on has twenty units or fifty, the process of obtaining financing will be the same, and in both cases will require substantial effort. Generally, this is the same situation as if you were buying something in bulk, the more you buy the cheaper the price of each unit.

Look for an agency that keeps your best interest in mind. If you end up with a bad real estate company, you may pay more for the property than what it is worth. Be certain the commercial property you are considering has good utilities access. You will need access to electricity, water, sewer and maybe gas in addition to any unique need that your business has.

Location is the most important factor in choosing a commercial property to buy. Think about the type of neighborhood the property is in. Cross-check similar areas to see how they are growing. By calculating growth in similar areas, you will be able to ascertain whether the piece of property you are looking at is going to continue growing.

Take digital photographs of the unit. The picture needs to show defects like carpet spots, wall holes, or discolored sinks and tubs. You need to do this so that all terms match the pro forma, and also the rent roll. If you do not look over these key terms, you could find a term that was not considered in the rent roll, which could cause a change in the pro forma.

Before you make a large investment in real estate, take a look at local income levels, unemployment rates and the expansion or contraction of local employers. In addition, you want to keep in mind what else is close to the property. Any place that supplies a large number of jobs to the economy can raise the resale value of any property and make it much faster to sell if you decided to go that route. Big employers might consist of hospitals, factories, or universities.

As this article mentioned, there are numerous reasons why people invest in commercial properties, and each reason requires additional research. Just put the strategies you just learned into practice, and your yearly returns will climb into the double digits surprisingly quickly.

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Davis, Haith win AP player, coach awards

Kentucky forward Anthony Davis is presented his award as the Associated Press NCAA college basketball player of the year on Friday, March 30, 2012, in New Orleans, La. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Kentucky forward Anthony Davis is presented his award as the Associated Press NCAA college basketball player of the year on Friday, March 30, 2012, in New Orleans, La. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Missouri coach Frank Haith poses with his award as the Associated Press NCAA college basketball coach of the year on Friday, March 30, 2012, in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Missouri coach Frank Haith picks up his daughter, Brianna, 7, as he poses with his award as the Associated Press NCAA college basketball coach of the year on Friday, March 30, 2012, in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Kentucky forward Anthony Davis bends to reach the microphone as he speaks after being presented his award as the Associated Press NCAA college basketball player of the year on Friday, March 30, 2012, in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

NEW ORLEANS (AP) ? Anthony Davis was busier than any of the other players in the Final Four.

The Kentucky freshman had to make the circuit of Player of the Year presentations Friday, not that he was complaining.

"There were a lot of awards yesterday and today," Davis said with a big smile. "It's a great feeling, especially as a freshman. I've been working hard and now it's rewarding."

Davis became the first Kentucky player and second freshman to be selected The Associated Press' Player of the Year. He picked up his latest trophy, along with Coach of the Year Frank Haith of Missouri.

It was Davis' second ceremony of the day, and he had to make a quick exit to get to practice, part of the preparations for the national semifinal matchup against Louisville on Saturday.

"This is great to be here and hopefully we can win the national championship and accomplish our goal," he said. "Even if we come up short we still had a great season."

The 6-foot-10 Davis sure did.

He averaged 14.3 points ? on a team with six double-figure scorers ? 10.0 rebounds and 4.6 blocks while shooting 64.2 percent from the field. His block total is a school record and third-best ever for a freshman. He was the Southeastern Conference's Player, Freshman and Defensive Player of the Year.

"My expectations were nothing like this; I wasn't planning on any awards," he said of how he approached his first ? and what many project will be his only ? season in college basketball. "I have to thank my teammates for those lob passes for easy baskets and for them getting beat off the dribble for all those blocked shots. Without them there are no awards."

No Kentucky player had won the award which started in 1961, and the only other freshman to win it was Kevin Durant of Texas in 2007.

"I'm surprised because you've had a lot of great players from Kentucky," Davis said. "Hopefully I'm starting something, and a lot of Kentucky players will win this award."

Davis received 43 votes from the 65-member national media panel that selects the weekly Top 25. Balloting was done before the NCAA tournament.

Thomas Robinson of Kansas was second with 20 votes, and Draymond Green of Michigan State received the other two votes.

Jimmer Fredette of BYU won the award last season.

Haith's first season at Missouri got off to a rough start and ended with a second-round thud in the NCAA tournament. In between his unpopular selection to replace Mike Anderson at Missouri and the Tigers' stunning loss to 15th-seeded Norfolk State, things went very well.

Missouri won 30 games and the Big 12 tournament and was ranked in the AP poll the entire season, reaching second for one week and was third in the final poll.

Haith received 21 votes from the media panel, while John Calipari of Kentucky and Tom Izzo of Michigan State tied for second with 10 votes each. The voting was done before the NCAA tournament.

Unlike Davis, Haith didn't have a practice to rush to Friday.

"It's good to see your peers at something like the Final Four, but the disappointment of your season being over is still there," Haith said. "Still, I can't tell you how honored and humbled I am with all the recognition."

Haith left Miami after seven seasons to take over the program at Missouri.

"My landing in Columbia wasn't greeted with a lot of yeas and congratulations, but I wasn't disappointed, rather encouraged because that showed me passion. And I wanted that, because that kind of passion means you have a chance to be successful," he said.

Haith's coaching style was very different from Anderson's uptempo pressure way and that meant change, something a lot of college players don't take to easily.

"Mike Anderson left me some pretty good players," Haith said. "They bought into change, and that's not always easy when you have a system in place they want. I give the players a lot of credit for buying in. When the players buy in you have a chance to be successful."

Haith, who joined Norm Stewart in 1994 as the only Missouri coaches to win the award, said it was early in the season when he knew the players had bought in.

"We were in Kansas City for the CBE Classic, and we beat Cal and Notre Dame," Haith said. "We changed things, and I think you have to have success to make change. We saw success, and those guys started to buy in. And it was all because of the leadership on the team."

Haith was hired at Missouri with the knowledge the program he was leaving was under NCAA investigation for possible rules violations.

"I think we, the Mizzou Nation and my family, all will be happy when it's all over with, but we can't control the NCAA and the time frame in which they work," he said.

He was asked if he was confident the investigation would come up empty.

"Absolutely," he said.

Associated Press

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