PHILADELPHIA -- For the first time ever, the Womens Table Tennis World Cup is coming to the U.S. -- bringing 20 top-ranked players from powerhouses as far afield as Singapore, Japan and Germany to Philadelphia.Its so cool, its absolutely amazing, said Lily Zhang, one of two Americans competing. Im so excited that we can finally host the World Cup. Thats huge, you know.Stakes are high. After the Olympics, the World Cup is one of the most prestigious titles in ping pong, and winners will split a $150,000 prize pool.I really want to win, said Elizabeta Samara, 27, a Romanian player seeded 10th in the tournament. Yes, I also want to enjoy, but enjoying not just for fun, you know?Among the competitors are Olympians, a 15-year-old from Japan, a Korean player coached by her mother since the age of six and eight players fresh to the tournament. They will be smashing ping pong balls at speeds of over 60 miles an hour. The players will be whittled down to one champion over six rounds and three days.China has won every World Cup since the tournament began 20 years ago -- but because of injuries -- it wont be participating. That means a different country will now have the opportunity to snag the title.I expect everybodys level of all the countries to be very close, said Lily Yip, coach of the American team. Maybe our U.S. team can win. You never know.Table tennis has enjoyed an uptick in popularity over the past few decades, but recently, player numbers have been stagnating, dropping from over 19 million in 2010 to around 16.5 million last year, according to USA Table Tennis.Many Americans dont understand that ping pong is actually a very difficult, very high-level sport, said Yip. They still think of it as a `basement sport.Tournament organizers are optimistic the World Cup will breathe new life into the game, proving its worthy of more than just a casual round or two.I think that if we can pack this place, well have no choice but to bring this tournament back here, said Gordon Kaye, CEO of USA Table Tennis, one of the sponsors of the event.Matches will be played over the weekend, with the final showdown scheduled for Sunday night. Air Force 1 Cheap Wholesale . Datsyuk will miss Tuesdays game against New Jersey and could be sidelined longer, while Cleary will likely miss at least the next three games. Its been an injury-plagued season for Datsyuk, who has suited up for just 39 games. Air Force 1 Clearance .Y. -- Paul Byron and Matt Stajan scored as the Calgary Flames started a five-game road trip with a 2-1 overtime win over the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday afternoon. http://www.discountairforce1.com/ . Louis. To which I would say two things: 1. 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KENNEWICK, Wash. -- Josh Hawkinson and freshman Malachi Flynn each scored 18 points to help Washington State beat Division II Central Washington 81-76 on Tuesday night.Washington State was behind 42-36 at halftime but Ike Iroegbu scored 14 of his 15 points in the second half to help hold off the Wildcats. The Cougars took a 55-53 lead with just under 12 minutes left on Iroegbus basket and they never trailed again.Hawkinson grabbed 12 rebounds for his 42nd career double-double but the Cougars (2-0) were outrebounded 42-35. Flynn, playing in his second game at point guard, turned it over just once in 32 minutes.Washington State made 27 of 54 shots (50 percent) but hit just 4 of 14 from 3-point range.Dom Hunter made four 3-pointers and scored 26 points for Central Washington. He was 9 of 24 from the floor. Naim Ladd and Fuquan Niles added 12 points apiece, and Niles grabbed 16 rebounds for his first double--double with the Wildcats.ddddddddddddIn the first half we were getting some transition baskets, Central Washington coach Greg Sparling said. They went smaller in the second half and started switching everything, which is fine. We just didnt make shots. We tried to adjust to it, but by the time we adjusted it was too late.INJURY UPDATEIroegbu took a hard spill early in the second half on a drive to the basket.Im hurting right now, Ill get some ice on it, Iroegbu said in a radio interview. After I fell, I went back into the locker room and gathered myself. You could say that foul really woke me up.UP NEXTCentral Washington travels to face Dixie State on Friday in Seattle.Washington State plays in the Paradise Jam in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands on Friday against No. 22 Creighton. ' ' '