tenfold when Luck was drafted first overall by Manning’s Ind

Andrew Luck was always going to be compared to Peyton Manning; young phenoms are likened to established stars in sports all the time. The comparisons then, naturally, increased tenfold when Luck was drafted first overall by Manning’s Indianapolis Colts, trading away their best player ever to make room for the stud rookie. Three years into Luck’s career with the Colts –and Manning’s time with the Denver Broncos – the question now becomes when will Luck pass Manning on the list of top NFL quarterbacks? An argument could be made that Luck has already done so – he passed for 34 more yards and one more touchdown in the regular season – but until he does it in the postseason, Manning will still pull rank. Luck of course, has just that opportunity Sunday, and the timing may be right. Luck is entering his prime just as Manning’s window appears to be closing. Luck enters the game with a receiving corps that could rival any of Manning’s pass-catching groups from his Colts days. The group is led by Reggie Wayne, who has transcended the Manning and Luck eras. The 36-year-old finished second on the team with 779 receiving yards, behind only TY Hilton who finished with 1,345 receiving yards – sixth in the league – and seven touchdowns. Other players that contributed to the team’s league-leading pass offence included tight ends Coby Fleener (774 receiving yards) and Dwayne Allen (395 receiving yards) who each had a team-high eight receiving touchdowns, and backup receivers Hakeem Nicks (405 receiving yards) and Donte Moncrief (444 receiving yards). Luck and the receivers will have to step up because not much can be expected from the run game. Indy finished ranked 22nd in the run game at just more than 100 yards per game on average. Ahmad Bradshaw’s season-ending leg injury was a big blow to the Colts’ rushing attack, but taking a look back at Bradshaw’s injury history, Indy probably should have known this was going to happen at some point. Trent Richardson simply isn’t a good running back, and proved that once again this season, which is partly why Dan Herron and Zurlon Tipton split carries in the team’s Wild Card win over Cincinnati. Richardson was battling an illness but was declared active before not getting any touches. Regardless who leads the rushing attack against Denver Sunday, the Broncos’ second-ranked rush defence (79.8) likely won’t be too worried they’ll be getting beaten on the ground. Of course the Broncos pass defence is pretty good too, ninth in the league averaging 225.4 yards against per game, but they’re up against a much stiffer test. Indy’s defence is a little closer to the middle of the pack. They finished 11th against the pass, giving up just 229.3 yards per game on average, but their run defence finished just 18th in the league at 113.4 yards per game on average. The team’s current stars are on offence and the old household names on the Colts’ defence are now retired or elsewhere, but there are solid players that will need to have big games against Manning and the Broncos’ offence for Indy to have a chance Sunday. It’s a poorly kept secret the best strategy against Manning is to pressure him. Linebackers Jonathan Newsome, Erik Walden, Bjoern Werner, and D’Qwell Jackson – and more importantly their 20 combined sacks – must be busy chasing Manning around this weekend because if the 38-year-old Hall of Famer is given time in the pocket, he’ll make it a long day for the entire Colts’ defensive unit. One other Indy defender to keep an eye on is corner Vontae Davis. Manning has nothing but weapons at his disposal but if Davis can eliminate one of them, or even better add to his four interceptions on the season, the rest of the Colts’ secondary will have an easier time keeping the Broncos in check. Former Bronco Mike Adams would surely love to have a big game against his former teammates. The storyline is easy and while many think Manning still has at least one trump card to play over Luck left in his hand – the Broncos are currently seven-point favourites in Las Vegas – if Luck is really one of the great ones, he may be able to orchestrate a big-game upset even before he’s fully ripe. And a win would score one for Luck in the comparisons in another way too; Manning has a reputation for fading when the spotlight is brightest. PHOENIX -- Goran Dragic had a special person he wanted to impress. Son Mateo -- age three months and three days -- attended his first NBA game. "I was a little bit hyped," Dragic said. "I tried to show him what his daddy can do." As has been the case often in this breakout season, Dragic did a lot, especially when it mattered most. He scored 13 of his career-high 34 points in the final seven minutes and the Phoenix Suns pulled away to beat the depleted Golden State Warriors 122-109 on Saturday night. Dragic, who also had 10 assists, topped 30 points for the sixth time this season as the Suns (30-20) pulled a half-game ahead of the Warriors (30-21) for the sixth-best record in the Western Conference. Gerald Green added 25 points and P.J. Tucker had 16 points and a career-best 15 rebounds for Phoenix. After two sub-par performances in losses, the Suns might have had their best offensive game, coach Jeff Hornacek said. "These guys were sharp," he said. "The one thing I told them, especially that fourth quarter, they played smart." Stephen Curry had 28 points and nine assists and Harrison Barnes scored 23 points for the Warriors, who were without front-line starters Andrew Bogut and David Lee. Both missed their second straight game, Bogut with left shoulder inflammation, Lee with a left shoulder sprain and left hip strain. "We are a no-excuse team," Golden State coach Mark Jackson said. "Obviously were missing those guys but we still have more than enough to win ball games. Give the credit they played extremely well. They are a very good offensive team." Dragic, left out of the All-Star game, made 10 of 13 shots. He tied his career best for 3-pointers made with six, in seven attempts. His torrid finish came after he experienced a dizzy spell. After a couple of sports drinks, he felt better. Dragic said Hornacek has made it clear that when the game is on the line, its time to step up. "I was kind of cruising the third quarter," Dragic said. "I just hit one 3 and I was not aggresssive enough, and then the fourth quarter I just started playing.dddddddddddd I just started feeling good." Curry was 0 for 3 shooting and scoreless in the fourth quarter. "They got hot," Curry said. "Gerald Green and Dragic made some big-time shots. We had some shots that spun in and out. It was one of those nights we thought that, besides the boards, we played well all-around. We didnt have timely stops." Phoenix took the lead for good with the last basket of the opening quarter and was up by as many as 14 in the third but Curry kept the Warriors close. Golden State twice cut it to two in the final quarter, the last time at 102-100 on Jermaine ONeals tip-in with 7:55 to play. Dragic sank two 3s in an 11-2 run that finally put the Suns in control for good, 113-102 on Tuckers basket with just under four minutes to play. Phoenix outscored Golden State 20-9 over the final 7:33. The Suns opened the second half with a 13-3 run, taking a 76-62 lead on Tuckers 3-pointer, but Curry scored four and Barnes hit a 3 in a 7-0 spurt that cut it to 78-71 with six minutes left in the third quarter. Golden State outscored the Suns 11-4 over the final two minutes of the quarter to slice Phoenixs lead to 95-90 entering the fourth. Phoenix led most of the first half but never by more than nine points and was up 63-59 at the break. Without Bogut and Lee, the Warriors were outrebounded 26-15 in the first half and 45-34 for the game. "We had to crash the boards," Tucker said. "The boards were key, the paint was key. We know Steph is going to make crazy shots, Klay (Thompson) will get a couple off. Thats stuff we can live with. With the boards, not giving up second opportunity points was key and thats what I really wanted to capitalize on tonight." Notes: The Suns have won 10 in a row in games where Green scored at least 20 points. ... Both teams close out their pre-All Star game schedule at home against Miami, Phoenix on Tuesday and Golden State on