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ARLINGTON, Texas -- Ezekiel Elliott ran faster after he crossed the goal line than he did looking for a hole to get in the end zone from the 2-yard line.Dallas rookie sensation and NFL rushing leader had his eyes on an oversized Salvation Army red kettle in front of the stands. He jumped in, then disappeared when he crouched down.Elliott rushed for a career-high 159 yards and that short score and the Cowboys closed in on home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs with a 26-20 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday night.The Cowboys (12-2) bounced back after their franchise-record 11-game winning streak ended, hanging on after what looked to be a festive night following Elliotts antics turned tense when Jameis Winston rallied the Bucs from a 17-3 deficit to a 20-17 lead.One of the words we talked about right from the outset this week was `response, Cowboys coach Jason Garrett said. We did a good job early in the ballgame to get a lead and they started throwing the ball a lot early in the second half and they went ahead.And again, that word `response came back to the forefront.Making his debut in the Sunday night spotlight, Winston threw for 247 yards and two touchdowns but had four turnovers, including an interception that led to Dan Baileys 38-yard field goal that gave Dallas a 23-20 lead early in the fourth quarter.Tampa Bay (8-6) had its five-game winning streak snapped and fell a game behind Atlanta in the NFC South.Weve just got to keep winning, see how it plays out, Winston said. I know Im going to keep fighting. Im not worried about not fighting. We just got to keep winning games.Dallas stayed two games ahead of the New York Giants in the NFC East and needs a win without any help to clinch the home field for the postseason.Elliott had NFL career rushing leader and former Dallas star Emmitt Smith and plenty of his teammates laughing when he jumped into the kettle -- a staple in the end zones from Thanksgiving on every year with one of the Cowboys most visible charities.Garrett wasnt quite as amused, mostly because the move cost the Cowboys a 15-yard penalty on the kickoff.He was actually talking about that pregame, should he do it, will they fine him, said fellow rookie Dak Prescott, Elliotts quarterback. I didnt know he was actually going to go down and come back up slow. Got a good laugh out of it, him coming up real slowly. It was funny.Prescott bounced back from his worst game as a pro, going 32 of 36 for 279 yards a week after completing less than 50 percent of his passes in a 10-7 loss to the New York Giants.He also set a franchise record for rushing touchdowns by a quarterback on a wide-open 2-yarder up the middle on a draw. His sixth rushing score of the year topped Don Merediths previous club record from 1966.Elliott had 76 of his yards with Dallas trying to control the clock on its final two possessions, but Winston still had a chance in the final 2 minutes after second-half scoring tosses to Adam Humphries and Cameron Brate gave the Bucs a brief lead.Tampa Bays last chance ended on downs at its 20, and the Bucs got just one first down on their final three possessions.COOLED-DOWN DEFENSEThe Bucs streak of five straight games of holding opponents to under 21 points -- their longest since 2009-10 -- ended, with Dallas gaining 449 yards, second-most this year against Tampa Bay. Elliott was the second 100-yard rusher of the season. A week after Drew Brees threw three interceptions in New Orleans loss to the Bucs, Prescott had his 11th game without one.PASSING TODallas tight end Jason Witten passed former teammate Terrell Owens for seventh place on the career receptions list, getting his 1,079th on a 6-yarder in the second quarter. The 34-year-old Witten, in his 14th season, had eight catches in the first half and 10 for the game, giving him 1,086.RARE MULTIPLE MISSESBailey missed two in a game for the first time since his rookie year in 2011. The first came up short from 56 yards , and the second was wide left from 52 in the final seconds of the first half. The misses against Arizona five years ago were from 50 and 49. Bailey is the NFLs career leader in accuracy among kickers with at least 100 attempts.INJURIESTampa Bay defensive lineman William Gholston and Dallas linebacker Justin Durant left the game with elbow injuries.UP NEXTBuccaneers: Finish regular season with two games against NFC South opponents, at New Orleans on Saturday and home against Carolina on Jan. 1.Cowboys: Wrap up regular-season home schedule against Detroit the day after Christmas, a Monday night, before visiting fading Philadelphia in finale.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL---Follow Schuyler Dixon on Twitter at https://twitter.com/apschuyler Clearance Running Shoes . I cant pinpoint a date, but I do remember a player from my youth. Brian Downing was with the Chicago White Sox at a time when I listened to every game I possibly could on the radio. That particular season the late great Harry Caray was calling the White Sox games. Running Shoes Cheap Online . - NASCAR announced a 33-race schedule for the 2014 Nationwide Series with virtually no changes from this years slate. http://www.runningshoescheap.net/ . The veteran safety was a starter for the Bengals from 2008-2012. He totaled 41 tackles and three interceptions while starting all but four of the 13 games he played last season. Running Shoes Sale Clearance . -- The Bishops Gaiters are showing they belong among the countrys top varsity football teams. Wholesale Running Shoes Cheap . But the quarterback hopes to stay involved in football after officially calling it quits Tuesday. "Id love to look at those opportunities as they arise," Pierce said in an interview from his Winnipeg eatery. STORRS, Conn. -- Northeastern hadnt beaten UConn since the year before Jim Calhoun left the Boston-based Huskies to coach the ones at Connecticut.That changed Monday night.T.J. Williams scored 20 points and Northeastern won 64-61, dropping UConn to 0-2 for the first time in 48 years.Its pretty big for the school and its pretty big for our team this year, Williams said. Its really huge. It really hasnt sunk in yet, but it feels great; it feels wonderful.Donnell Gresham Jr. added 13 points for Northeastern (2-0) and Alex Murphy had nine points and 15 rebounds.Terry Larrier scored 17 points and Jalen Adams had 15 for UConn.The UConn Huskies had a chance to tie the game at the end when freshman Alterique Gilbert stole a cross-court pass from Murphy as Northeastern was trying to run out the clock. But his 3-pointer hit the rim just before the buzzer.I made one of the dumbest plays of my basketball career, said Murphy, a graduate transfer who played at both Duke and Florida. It got picked off but Donnell (Gresham) was there to defend the shot, so thank God for him.Northeastern led most of the way and was up 35-31 at halftime.UConn went on a 9-1 run to open the second half to take a four-point lead, but Northeastern responded with a 10-2 run of its own.A fast-break dunk by Murphy gave Northeastern its largest lead of the second half at 61-54 with just under 4 minutes left.Larriers off-balance runner in the lane had cut the lead to three points with 1:07 left and the Huskies forced a turnover to get the ball back. But Larrier missed two 3-pointers before Gilberts play at the end.Northeastern shot just 36 percent from the floor, but held UConn to 39 percent and outrebounded Connecticut 47-38, including 17-13 on the offensive boards.This is a dark time, UConn coach Kevin Ollie said. I know that. I understand the expectations of everybody here, in this room and at UConn. I feel embarrassed right now. But when I feel embarrassed, I know Im going to get through it and this team is going to get through it.ddddddddddddBIG PICTUREUConn began the season ranked 18th in the nation and fell out of the rankings on Monday after losing its opener to Wagner , the teams first season-opening loss in 17 years. The Huskies are now 0-2 for the first time since the 1968-69 season, a year they started 0-10.Northeastern: Northeastern last beat UConn in 1985, a 90-73 victory for Calhouns team. The Hall-of-Fame coach won 248 games at Northeastern before guiding UConn to 625 wins and three national titles. Northeastern had lost eight straight in the series and 22 of the last 23 matchups between the schools. The Boston-based Huskies are now 5-35 against their namesakes.STAT OF THE NIGHTUConn made just 5 of 21 shots from 3-point range after going 6 for 19 from behind the arc against Wagner. Guards Rodney Purvis and Gilbert combined to go 2 for 11.BLOCK PARTYUConns 7-foot center Amida Brimah blocked eight shots, giving him 289 for his career. That is third in school history behind Emeka Okafor (441) and Hasheem Thabeet (417).INJURYUConn freshman guard Christian Vital, who had five points in the Huskies opener, was forced to sit out the game against Northeastern with back issues.UP NEXTUConn: The Connecticut Huskies head west and then head further west. UConn plays its first road game against Loyola Marymount in Kevin Ollies hometown of Los Angeles before traveling to Hawaii for the Maui Invitational, where Oklahoma State will be the opening round opponent on Nov. 21.Northeastern: The Boston-based Huskies face Boston University for the second time in three games on Friday. Northeastern won the season-opening matchup at home 87-77. The second game comes as part of the Steve Wright Classic. That tournament, being hosted by BU also will include games against LIU Brooklyn and Maine. ' ' '