HUMBLE, Texas -- Phil Mickelson has never shied away from suspense, though its usually limited to his play. Wholesale NFL Jerseys . The four-time major winner, who withdrew from last weeks Texas Open after pulling a muscle in his right side, waited as long as possible to end the guessing about whether he would play this week ahead of the Masters. Mickelson finally announced his intentions to indeed play at this weeks Houston Open on Wednesday afternoon through a post on his website. The decision came after two days of "light practice" at Augusta National, where Mickelson said his side "felt sore as opposed to hurting." "I feel that to give myself the best chance at the Masters I have to play in Houston," Mickelson said. "If I thought I would injure myself further I would have withdrawn from the tournament, but the last few days have been good." Mickelson didnt play in Wednesdays pro-am, fueling speculation that he might withdraw from the tournament he won in 2011. However, tournament director Steve Timms said that had been planned for six weeks -- long before his injury. Timms said Mickelson had already agreed to take part in a sponsor dinner rather than play in the pro-am. The worlds No. 5 player helped solidify the Houston Opens spot as a preferred Masters tuneup by committing to play in 2008 and every year since. He finished 16th last year. Mickelsons return to the 7,441-yard Golf Club of Houston -- formerly known as Redstone Golf Club before an ownership change -- highlights a stellar field that features the winners of 34 major championships. Its a field that includes Henrik Stenson, Rory McIlroy and Sergio Garcia, among others, as well as defending champion D.A. Points. First and foremost, theyre after the winners share of the $6.4 million event -- while also using the courses slick greens and tight rough to prepare for the Masters. After a schedule change last year, the tournament is back in its normal slot. And thats just fine with McIlroy, who tied for 45th at the event last year while still in the infant stages of a club change. "Its brilliant," McIlroy said. "They get the fairway heights the same, the rough heights the same, the runoff around the greens ... Its perfect for that." McIlroy finished 19th at the Houston Open in 2009 before missing the cut a year later. The former world No. 1 was winless on the PGA Tour last year, though he has been trending upward since -- including a win over Adam Scott in the Australian Open in December. He finished second at the Honda Classic last month before tying for 25th at Doral. McIlroy took the last three weeks off leading into the Houston Open-- a big change from last year when he decided to play the Texas Open only days ahead of time. Even with Augusta National looming, McIlroy said hes fully focused on competing this week. "I think its important to finish well," McIlroy said. "I dont think theres any better way to prepare than getting yourself into contention and playing golf under pressure, because thats ultimately what you want to do next week." Points sank a 13-foot par putt on the 72nd hole to win last year, winning by one stroke over Stenson and Billy Horschel. The American hasnt finished higher than 28th this year, including missed cuts in each of his last two tournaments, but his confidence is high this week. "Knowing that Ive had success here, and its cool to be out there," Points said. "Makes you feel like, Hey, I can do that again." Mickelson tees off Thursday morning with Webb Simpson and Keegan Bradley, with the threesome of Texas native Jimmy Walker, Stenson and Matt Kuchar behind them. McIlroys threesome with Dustin Johnson and Luke Donald begins in the afternoon, followed immediately by a group including Jordan Spieth, Garcia and Steve Stricker. Cheap Jerseys . - Mark Sanchez found out the New York Jets had acquired Tim Tebow on a conference call with team management. Wholesale NBA Jerseys . James scored 25 points against his former team, leading the energized Heat to a 114-107 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday night. Dwyane Wade added 24 points and Chris Bosh had 22 for the Heat, idle since a 90-84 loss Tuesday at Indiana. http://www.nbajerseyschinawholesale.com/ .com) - Bradley Beal deposited a season-high 33 points and John Wall posted another double-double as the Washington Wizards went on the road and beat the Houston Rockets, 104-103.PHILADELPHIA -- The 76ers have fumbled their way toward the wrong kind of NBA history. Amare Stoudemire had 22 points and 10 rebounds, Carmelo Anthony scored 21 and the New York Knicks won their eighth straight game, 93-92 over Philadelphia on Friday night, sending the Sixers to their 23rd straight loss. The Sixers have matched the Vancouver Grizzlies (1995-96), Denver Nuggets (1997-98) and Charlotte Bobcats (2011-12) for the second-longest single-season losing streak in NBA history. The Cleveland Cavaliers set the record of 26 consecutive losses in the 2010-11 season. The Sixers (15-54) would have to pull off an upset to avoid tying the record. Up next, three straight road games at Chicago, San Antonio and Houston. If the Sixers lose all three, the potential record 27th loss would come March 29 vs. Detroit. With 8.6 seconds left and the Sixers down 92-90, Sixers guard James Anderson mishandled the ball as he attempted to pass it to Thaddeus Young, and it bounced out of bounds. After Anthony hit 1 of 2 free throws, Michael Carter-Williams missed the tying 3-point attempt, and a putback at the buzzer made no difference in ending the streak. Tyson Chandler had 17 points for the Knicks, who are suddenly charging for a playoff spot. Carter-Williams, one of the few bright spots this season, led Philly with 22 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists. Young hit a 3-pointer with 32.5 seconds left, Philadelphias 40th attempt, that pulled the Sixers to 92-90 with 32.5 seconds left. He scored 21 points and the Sixers set a team mark with 41 3-point attempts. They made only 10. The Knicks entered the day only four gamess back of Atlanta for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Wholesale Basketball Jerseys. Their recent surge started right around the time news broke that New York wanted to hire Phil Jackson as team president. Jackson was officially introduced on Tuesday, and the Knicks are starting to give him reason to believe he might be in charge of a playoff contender. The Knicks never dominated, but did enough to hold off a Sixers team freefalling toward one of the worst seasons in NBA history. New York shook off 33 per cent shooting in the first half to hit a slew of big 3s and throw down one-handed jams that turned back Philadelphia at every run. After the Knicks started 1 for 16 from 3-point range, J.R. Smith hit a pair early in the third that gave them some needed breathing room. And in the fourth, Stoudemires dunk pushed the lead to 11 and Tim Hardaway Jr., followed with one of his own that brought a huge pro-Knicks crowd to their feet. For a team that ranked 29th in attendance, the blue-and-orange fans that colored the arena gave the fourth quarter a rare, lively atmosphere. The losses have piled up for the Sixers -- and now, an injury. Shooting guard Tony Wroten, their third-leading scorer, left the game in the fourth with a sprained right ankle. They could have used his scoring punch in the final minute. Instead, the put the ball in Andersons hands, and he put it out of reach of an overdue win. The Sixers lost their 18th straight home game since beating Charlotte on Jan. 15. Notes: 76ers coach Brett Brown was whistled for a technical foul in the fourth. ... The Sixers previous high in 3-point attempts was 35. ' ' '