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HOUSTON -- Case Keenum will start at quarterback in place of a healthy Matt Schaub when the Texans host division foe Indianapolis on Sunday night. Coach Gary Kubiak announced the decision Monday and said he had decided before the bye weekend to give Keenum a second straight start as the Texans try to end a five-game losing streak. Kubiak said the decision was not for the rest of the season, but is geared toward trying to keep the team going in the right direction following a close 17-16 loss to Kansas City in which Keenum played well. "Ive got to make decisions I think are best for the football team right now," Kubiak said. "The decision I made was based on what I saw take place last week with Case and him taking advantage of an opportunity. I want to see him move forward." Keenum saw the first game action of his two-year career in the loss to the Chiefs. Teammates pointed to the energy he brought to the field while going 15 for 25 for 271 yards and a touchdown. "I thought we went out and played better football and thats why we had a chance to win in Kansas City," Kubiak said. "I thought (Keenum) did some really good things. Hes got to improve. This football teams got to improve around him." Keenum said he needs to "get better in a lot of things," including making reads and picking up the types of blitzes he saw in the fourth quarter against Kansas City. "I imagine well see it again," Keenum said of the pressure. "You put it on film and people see it. So correcting that is going to be big time." Schaub, a seven-year veteran who was handpicked by Kubiak to replace David Carr in 2007, got off to a rough start leading the team to a 2-4 record before leaving a loss to the St. Louis Rams with an ankle injury. "Its obviously very disappointing with all weve been through here and all weve done, but Im part of the reason were in this situation as a football team," Schaub said. "As a player and a competitor, I dont like it and I want to be out there. Obviously, I havent played up to my standards this year. I think thats where it mostly stems from." Schaub was back at practice Monday, but Keenum will get the reins of the offence knowing that hes starting not for injury reasons, but for his play on the field. Now he will get the chance to show it in front of the hometown fans. "I imagine Ill have a few more goose bumps than I did last week," said Keenum, who starred at the University of Houston. "To play in Houston, to play at Reliant . I know Sunday nights going to be very special. Who will line up behind Keenum is still in question. Starting running back Arian Foster (hamstring) worked only with the trainers Monday and Ben Tate (ribs) missed practice altogether. "Im very concerned," Kubiak said. "I dont think were going to know anything until later this week. I think theyre both giving us everything they can to try and play this week." With both players out, running backs Deji Karim, Dennis Johnson and Ray Graham are working with the Texans this week. Notes: Linebackers Tavares Gooden and Jeff Tarpinian practiced with the team for the first time Monday since signing . Right guard Wade Smith was out with a knee injury. Cheap Shoes Australia Free Shipping . - After three days of light, make that very light, workouts, Team Irvin and Team Carter are ready for tonights Pro Bowl. Cheap Wholesale Shoes Australia . Top-seeded Djokovic, who is making only his second appearance this year after reaching the quarterfinals of the Australian Open, was a 6-3, 6-3 winner over 54th-ranked Istomin of Uzbekistan. "It wasnt as easy as the scoreline indicates," said Djokovic, who has won in Dubai on four occasions. http://www.shoescheapaustralia.com/. So much so that even a simple foul pop up to the first baseman turned into a run. Houstons four-run rally in the ninth inning to beat the Seattle Mariners 6-4 on Monday night was capped by a bizarre play that started as Crowe fouled out to first baseman Justin Smoak with runners on second and third. Clearance Shoes Online Australia . Cabrera is hitting .218 with three homers and 16 RBI in 80 games this season. The Padres recalled second baseman Brooks Conrad from Triple-A El Paso to replace Cabrera on the roster. Discount Shoes Australia . The 23-year-old Woods, Tiger Woods niece, closed with a 4-under 69 at Royal Pines to finish at 16-under 276. Lee also shot 69 in the event sanctioned by the European and Australian tours. Woods birdied the par-5 15th to open a two-stroke lead, hitting a wedge from about 120 yards to 4 feet.BROSSARD, Que. — It will be hard to overlook the head-to-head battle between the likely top two picks in the NHL draft when Canada faces the United States at the world junior championship. Debate has raged for at least two years on whether Canadas Connor McDavid or American Jack Eichel will go first at the 2015 draft in June. But before that is settled, the gifted teenagers will face each other in a showdown for first place in their preliminary round group at the Bell Centre on Wednesday afternoon. Watch the game on TSN1, TSN4, TSN5 and TSN GO at 3:30pm et/12:30pm pt or follow the action on the TSN Radio Network. While both insist the game is about the teams and not themselves, many fans in the seats and viewers on television will be comparing the play of two of the best junior prospects to emerge in recent years. Its there a little bit, McDavid said Tuesday of the Connor versus Jack sideshow. Its been something thats been there for a long time now, but at the end of the day, its the U.S. against Canada. Its not me against anybody else. Eichel agreed. Its not all about me versus Connor, its a huge matchup for the top seed in our bracket, he said. Eichel, who turned 18 on Oct. 28, was named captain of the American squad despite his youth, while Canada made McDavid, who turns 18 on Jan. 13, an alternate to captain Curtis Lazar. It is rare for a so-called underage player at the mostly 19-year-old tournament to wear any letter at all, but these two are special talents. Both are great skaters. Both have sublime hands and playmaking ability. Both pile up points, although neither has had a breakout game at the world juniors yet. After three games each, McDavid has a goal and two assists, all collected during a 4-0 win over Germany. Eichel has a goal and a helper. In the Ontario Hockey League, the six-foot-one 187-pound McDavid has 16 goals and 51 points in only 18 games for the Erie Otters. Before the world juniors, he hadnt played since Nov. 11 after breaking his right hand in a fight. The six-foot-two 193-pound Eichel has eight goals and 27 points in 16 games for Boston University playing against slightly older competition in the NCAA. Now they are set to play against each other with a host of NHL scouts and a national TV audience watching every move. You always want to be a difference maker, whatever game it is, said the soft-spoken McDavid. Obviously its a bigger stage, but that doesnt make a difference. Both coaches, Benoit Groulx for Canada and Mark Osiecki for the U.S., praised their young phenoms for not getting too caught up in the hype about themselves and for putting their teams performance first. Although McDavid andd Eichel have never really met off the ice, theyve faced each other before at under-17 and under-18 events.dddddddddddd They also both played at last years world junior championship in Malmo, Sweden, although neither was in a leading role at that point in their development. Its exciting, but its more exciting just to be at this tournament in general, said Eichel. Its been a lot of fun so far and Im sure itll be a blast. Canada and the U.S. have built a rivalry in recent years that will add intensity to the matchup. And regardless of who wins, they could end up meeting again in the knockout stage. For us, its Canada versus the U.S., not Connor versus Eichel, said Groulx. Those are two guys among 44 players who will play against each other. I cant answer for him, but I think a lot of media have been talking about Eichel and McDavid, so I think theyre used to it. But Connor is a team player and he thinks more about us winning than him versus Eichel. Canada (3-0-0 for nine points) has outscored its opponents 16-1 so far, while the U.S. (2-0-1 for eight points) has an 11-1 edge. The Americans lost a point by going to overtime and a shootout in its tournament opening 2-1 win over Finland. Where Canada has an edge is on the power play, which has scored on five of 10 chances. The Americans have one goal in 13 opportunities. Neither team has conceded a power-play goal. Groulx made a surprise move in announcing that Eric Comrie will get the start in goal. Zach Fucale, a Montreal native, started the first and third games, allowing one goal, while Comrie had a 4-0 shutout against Germany. While the choice suggests to some a lack of faith in Fucale, Groulx said he considers them equal and said it has not yet been decided which of them is the number one netminder. He also said that Vancouver Canucks prospect Jake Virtanen will stick with McDavids line with Curtis Lazar after playing there in the third period of a 4-1 win over Finland on Monday night. That bumps big Nick Ritchie of the Peterborough Petes to the fourth unit. Hes the same type of player as Rich, McDavid said of Virtanen. Hes a big body. He flies out there. Hes a real presence and he has a lot of skills. The game also features two more players slated as top-10 draft picks: fourth-line forward Lawson Crouse for Canada and defenceman Noah Hanifin of the U.S., who many have ranked just behind McDavid and Eichel. Team Canada Lines Forward Domi - Reinhart - Duclair Virtanen - McDavid - Lazar Paul - Petan - Fabbri Crouse - Gauthier - Ritchie Point Defence Nurse - Theodore Morrissey - Bowey Heatherington - Hicketts Morin Goaltender Comrie (starts) Fucale ' ' '