OROPA, Italy -- Enrico Battaglin sprinted to victory on a tough uphill finish to claim the 14th stage of the Giro dItalia on Saturday as the race hit the first of the high mountains. Nick Schmaltz Jersey . The Italian came from behind to overtake Jarlinson Pantano in the final 50 metres and edge out Dario Cataldo on the line after a climb to the sanctuary of Oropa, the scene of Marco Pantanis memorable victory in 1999. Pantano finished seven seconds behind. "I didnt believe I could do it until the last kilometre. My legs were at their limits, I was tired too," Battaglin said. "Then I saw that others too were breaking down. Then I gained some meters immediately, I gritted my teeth and I passed them in the last 20 metres. It is a superb win for me, what a fight." Rigoberto Uran of Colombia retained the overall lead but saw his advantage cut on the 164-kilometre (102-mile) route from Aglie. Cadel Evans -- who wore the pink jersey earlier in the race -- gained five seconds and is now 32 seconds behind Uran. Rafal Majka is third overall, 1:35 behind. "We lost a few seconds, but its no worry," Uran said. "The team is doing well, Im calm. But the Giro is still very open." It was the second of three stages dedicated to Pantani, the Italian cyclist who won both the Giro and Tour de France in 1998. He was found dead in a hotel room on Valentines Day in 2004, and a coroner ruled he died from cocaine poisoning. As the Giro entered the final week, the race entered the mountains and Fridays route had four categorized climbs including the steep final ascent. The breakaway of the day was formed of 21 riders but the peloton were happy to let them go, with none of the escapees less than half an hour behind Uran in the overall standings. The first two weeks of the Giro had been littered with crashes on wet roads, and even though the day was dry there was another crash with around 102K (63 miles) remaining as the peloton went through a roundabout. No one was seriously injured but Kanstantsin Siutsou later quit the race. Pieter Weening -- who won the ninth stage -- also retired during the day. The gap to the breakaway group went up to more than 10 minutes because of the crash but was back down to 9:29 at the start of the category 2 climb up to Alpe Noveis. And the peloton had gained more than two minutes at the top of the ascent after a gradient of up to 16 per cent. Nicolas Roche escaped from the break on the highest climb of the day, up the Bielmonte, which has a ski station at the summit. As he crested the top, he had 10 seconds on the remainder of the original break, which was down to 12 cyclists. The Irish cyclist was caught on the descent and Albert Timmer and Manuel Quinziato took over the lead before the latter had a mechanical problem at the start of the final climb. Timmer made an attempt to stay in front but was caught with 2K (1.2 miles) remaining by Cataldo and Pantano and dropped shortly after. Battaglin powered to catch the lead group inside the final kilometre and he surged forward again on the cobbled ramps up to the finish. Strong climbers Nairo Quintana and Domenico Pozzovivo will be looking to gain more time on Uran as the Giro stays in the mountains. Sundays 15th stage is mainly flat before another tough climb up to the finish of the 225K (140-mile) leg from Valdengo to Montecampione. Antti Raanta Jersey . -- Arizona coach Sean Miller rose from his seat every time Roberto Nelson touched the ball and yelled "Shooter!" He could have been talking about his own team, too. Christian Fischer Jersey . "For the past several weeks, Logan has been dealing and playing with an upper body injury," said general manager Doug Wilson in a statement. "Despite his efforts to play through it, the injury has not responded as we had hoped and Logan has made the decision to undergo a surgical procedure to repair the problem. https://www.cheapcoyotes.com/538z-martin-hanzal-jersey-coyotes.html .com) - The fading Ottawa Senators have a chance to make up some ground in the playoff race on Tuesday night as they play host to the New York Rangers.CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Phoenix Suns coach Jeff Hornacek would have preferred to coast to the finish Friday night. His young players seemed determined not to make it that easy on him. The Suns nearly squandered a 17-point lead in the final 4 minutes before escaping with a 98-91 victory over Charlotte. The Bobcats got within five in the final minute, but couldnt get over the hump. "Im not sure what we were doing out there for a while, but well take it," Hornacek said with a sense of relief in his voice. "We lost the last four games so well take any win regardless of how it looks." Channing Frye scored a season-high 20 points and P.J. Tucker was perfect from the field as the Suns beat the Bobcats for the fourth consecutive time. Tucker scored 17 points on 6-of-6 shooting. He drained three 3-pointers and his only miss of the night came on a late free throw. Goran Dragic added 14 points and eight assists two nights after scoring 31 in a loss to Sacramento. Gerald Green chipped in with 14 points and Markieff Morris had 11 points and nine rebounds off the bench. "Man, Ill take a win but that was pretty sketchy at the end," Frye said of the series of missed shots and turnovers in the final 4 minutes. "Were young and still trying to figure out (how to close games), but winning is winning. Ill take that any day of the week." Gerald Henderson scored 17 points and Kemba Walker had 16 to lead the Bobcats, who have lost three of four. Al Jefferson returned to the starting lineup and had nine points and six rebounds after missing the previous four games with an ankle injury. The Suns led 74-63 early in the fourth quarter when they went on a 10-0 run, with Green knocking down a baseline jumper and Frye and Marcus Morris connecting on 3-pointers to push the lead to 21. That brought boos from the home crowd in Charlotte for the first time under new coach Steve Clifford with 9 minutes left in the game. "It was like we were a step slower and we made some mental mistakes and turned the ball over," Jefferson said. "We juust didnt have it tonight. Mike Gartner Jersey. " Still, the Bobcats showed theyre starting to get used to playing with a low post presence like Jefferson, something Clifford has said would take some time given how little Jefferson played in the preseason due to ankle issues. On one possession, Henderson fed Jefferson in the low post, got the ball back and then returned it to Jefferson, who scored on a layup while drawing a foul. "We have to learn to play off Al," Clifford said. "They played small and when teams play like that we need to be able to pound them. We have to be able to get him the ball. Again, thats not an easy thing. Post-up basketball, as Ive said before, is the hardest thing to get good at." Said Jefferson: "I think its just a matter of game reps. (But) its not something Im panicking about." The Suns jumped out to a 55-44 lead in the first half behind 11 points from Frye. Miles Plumlee was strong on the boards early for the Suns and finished with 11 rebounds. Walker, who excited Bobcats fans Wednesday night with 31 points against Brooklyn, scored just three on 1-of-3 shooting in the first half and Charlotte didnt make a 3-pointer. The Suns continue their road trip with stops in Orlando and Miami. "We needed a win," Tucker said. "Its been a tough four games for us. Were on the road now and needed to get a win. It got a little crazy at the end out here, but we finished and got the win." Frye said it helped that the Suns didnt put pressure on themselves for a change. "Were just having fun out there," he said. "I think I was more relaxed today. When you start losing everything you start to get real tight, so we cant be like that. We just have to get out there and have fun." NOTES: With Jefferson back in the lineup, Bobcats centre Bismack Biyombo didnt play after averaging more than 20 minutes over the previous four games. ... Charlotte finished 3 of 14 from 3-point range -- with all the field goals coming in the fourth quarter. ... Dragic has scored in double figures in six straight games. ' ' '