MILWAUKEE -- Al Jefferson muscled his way through the Bucks defence. Then he cooled off by sticking the right ankle that had been bothering him in a bucket of ice. The Charlotte Bobcats are picking things up quickly with Jefferson in the middle again after the injury that had forced him out of the lineup. Jefferson scored 19 points, Gerald Henderson added 17 and the Bobcats handed the Milwaukee Bucks their eighth straight loss in a 96-72 win Saturday night. Jefferson, in his second game back from an ankle injury, added seven rebounds for Charlotte, which has won two of three to pull back to .500 (7-7). "My first game back, I was a little rusty," Jefferson said while icing down the ankle. The Bobcats lost to Phoenix 98-91 on Friday night, when Jefferson finished with nine points in his first action after missing four games. "But it never fails the second game. It like clicked," Jefferson said while snapping his fingers. "And thats what we did better than last night." Reserve Khris Middleton (20 points) led the Bucks, who shot just 35 per cent. Milwaukees losing streak is its longest since closing out the 2007-8 season with eight consecutive losses. Coach Larry Drew was optimistic before the game that his team would bounce back from a 115-107 loss in overtime to Philadelphia on Friday night. Instead, the Bucks struggled again. At 2-10, theyre the worst team in the Eastern Conference. "I owe the fans a big, big apology for the performance of this team tonight. Very, very disappointed," Drew said. "A team that I really thought after last nights loss would come out and play with some energy, with some passion and they did not do that." Middleton outscored the Bucks starting five of Caron Butler, Ersan Ilyasova, Zaza Pachulia, O.J. Mayo and Luke Ridnour, who combined for 16 points on 8-of-28 shooting. Charlotte led the entire way, building on a 46-39 halftime lead. A smattering of boos came down for the Bucks with Charlotte up 23 after three quarters. "I told the guys after the game that there will be changes in our starting lineup," Drew said. "If theyre not on the same page with it, so be it, but there will be changes." The Bobcats outmuscled the Bucks to pull away. Jeff Adrien added 10 rebounds off the bench for Charlotte, which had decisive edges on the boards (52-36) and points in the paint (48-28). Charlotte was briefly threatened in the second quarter, when the Bucks narrowed an early 12-point edge to 36-35. But Milwaukee had a 2-of-18 shooting stretch from late in the second quarter to late in the third. "The biggest thing was energy," Henderson said about the defensive effort. "Were coming off a tough loss at home. Then you come off a back-to-back. Milwaukee. Its cold. Youve just got to come with energy on the road." The Bucks, struggling with injuries, are slowly getting healthy. An injury list that once numbered about a half-dozen players was down to just two on Saturday night in Larry Sanders (thumb) and Carlos Delfino (foot). Point guard Brandon Knight returned to the floor after missing time with a hamstring injury. It still wasnt enough for the Bucks, who looked disjointed on the offensive end. Charlotte capitalized coming out of the half. Josh McRoberts (12 points, nine rebounds) hit a 3 from the wing with the shot clock winding down, leaving Ilyasova to hang his head in frustration as he jogged back up the floor. Mayo missed a quick jumper and the Bobcats came racing down in transition after a rebound by McRoberts. Jefferson drove the lane and got fouled, but missed the second of two foul shots. Then the 6-foot-10, 289-pound Jefferson showed exactly why Charlotte signed him to a three-year, $41 million contract in the off-season, grabbing the offensive board and getting fouled again. This time, Jefferson made both foul shots for an 11-point lead with 11:12 left in the third quarter. "Theres not many guys that can play him effectively," coach Steve Clifford said. "Hes an elite low-post scorer down there." John Henson had 10 points and nine boards for Milwaukee. Notes: Knight missed five games because of the injury. He had three points and seven assists in 25 minutes. Ridnour started at the point. ... The No. 2 Duke womens basketball team watched from the stands, ahead of the Blue Devils game Sunday against Marquette. Duke post player Amber Henson is Hensons sister. Ryan McDonagh Lightning Jersey . LOUIS -- When Braves second baseman Tyler Pastornicky backpedaled into shallow right field to catch the popup and Jason Heyward didnt arrive fast enough to take charge, Kolten Wong got the green light. Brayden Point Lightning Jersey .com) - John Wall supplied 24 points and 11 assists in leading the Washington Wizards to a 102-91 win over the New York Knicks on Christmas Day. http://www.lightninghockeystore.us/Ondrej-Palat-Jersey/ . -- Phil Mickelson came to the St. Cedric Paquette Jersey . The team made the announcement after Saturdays 6-5 loss to the Cincinnati Reds. RHP Kenny Giles will be called up from Triple-A Lehigh Valley to fill Adams spot on the roster. Louis Domingue Jersey . The same cant be said of last Saturdays 2-2 draw at Olympic Stadium against a very weakened New York Red Bulls side and one which had three stalwarts in Henry, Cahill and Olave back home in Harrison, NJ.NEW YORK -- Jose Fernandez arrived early. Wil Myers made it big after a blockbuster trade. Neither one needed much time to create a splash, and together they brought both Rookie of the Year awards back to Florida. Fernandez stood out in a very deep National League class this season, and the precocious Miami Marlins pitcher received 26 of 30 first-place votes from a Baseball Writers Association of America panel in results announced Monday. Myers won the American League prize after the Tampa Bay slugger put up impressive offensive numbers in barely half a season. The right fielder was chosen first on 23 of 30 ballots, beating out Detroit shortstop Jose Iglesias and Rays teammate Chris Archer. "Honestly, when I was called up that didnt even cross my mind. As the season went on I could see I would have a chance," Myers said on a conference call from his North Carolina home. "To be able to win is just a huge honour and Im very excited about it." The two announcements marked the beginning of awards week in baseball. NL and AL Manager of the Year will be revealed Tuesday, with the Cy Young winners Wednesday and MVPs on Thursday. Myers became the third Tampa Bay player in six years to be selected Rookie of the Year, joining Jeremy Hellickson (2011) and Evan Longoria (2008). Seated next to each other, Myers and Archer smiled and shook hands when the winner was revealed on MLB Network. Fernandez easily topped runner-up Yasiel Puig of the Los Angeles Dodgers as Cuban players ran 1-2 in the NL race. The only previous Rookie of the Year winners from Cuba came in the AL: Jose Canseco in 1986 and Tony Oliva in 1964. "It means a lot just to be compared to those guys," Fernandez said. "Im not sure I was even born when those guys were playing. But for sure I heard the names before. ... All the kids in Cuba play baseball." Puig received the other four first-place votes and amassed 95 points to 142 for Fernandez, who made the All-Star team at age 20. He went 12-6 with a 2.19 ERA and 187 strikeouts for a last-place club that finished 62-100. Fernandez was shut down in September after 172 2-3 innings to protect his precious arm. Still, his debut season was so superb that hes one of three finalists for the NL Cy Young Award -- though Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw is a heavy favourite. Fernandez already has one big prize, however, and he hugged his mother and grandmother when he won. He came to the United States by boat as a Cuban refugee in 2008, apparently rescuing his mom along the way. Drafted 14th overall in 2011 out of high school in Tampa, Fla., he had never pitched above Class A before this season. Fernandez was ticketed for Double-A Jacksonvillee at the end of spring training when injuries left two holes in Miamis rotation.dddddddddddd Fernandez became an unexpected addition to the roster, making him the youngest pitcher on a major league team on opening day. "I wasnt planning on being in the big leagues," he said. The surprises havent stopped -- on and off the mound. One day before winning the rookie award, a shocked Fernandez was reunited with his grandmother in Florida with help from his lawyer. "Out of nowhere," the pitcher said. "I have no idea how it happened." Now, she can visit for a few years and see him play in the majors. "Pretty excited about that," Fernandez said. After the Marlins dumped nearly all their high-priced stars last winter, Fernandez was a rare bright spot this season. The right-hander became the fourth Marlins player in 11 years to win Rookie of the Year, following Chris Coghlan (2009), Hanley Ramirez (2006) and Dontrelle Willis (2003). "Im very happy that he won," Puig told MLB.com in comments circulated by the Dodgers. "He worked really hard to achieve this and he pitched extremely well with Miami and he deserved this just as we deserved to be nominated. I am happy for him, that a Cuban won. Im happy his grandmother arrived and I hope he enjoys his time with his grandmother and enjoys the prize he won." The 22-year-old Myers batted .293 with 13 home runs and 53 RBIs in only 88 games after he was called up from the minors June 18. He immediately added much-needed power to the middle of the Rays lineup, helping them reach the playoffs as an AL wild card. Myers was rated one of baseballs best hitting prospects when he was traded from Kansas City to Tampa Bay last December in a seven-player deal that sent pitchers James Shields and Wade Davis to the Royals. "There were some mixed feelings in leaving Kansas City," Myers acknowledged. "I dont want to say they gave up on me. They made a move they thought would better their team and it did." Worked out well for Tampa Bay, too. The Rays were 36-33 before Myers arrived this season and went 56-38 the rest of the way. They won a tiebreaker at Texas for the final AL playoff berth and beat Cleveland in the wild-card game before getting eliminated by World Series champion Boston in the division series. Myers finished with 131 points in the balloting to 80 for the slick-fielding Iglesias, traded from the Red Sox to the Tigers just before the deadline in late July. Both teams ended up in the AL championship series. Iglesias was listed first on five ballots. Archer and fellow pitcher Dan Straily of the Oakland Athletics each got one first-place vote. ' ' '