t win of September.Neither team can afford a loss as the remaining games dwindle and the distance separating them

Scott Brooks returns to familiar territory Wednesday night, though the view will be very different.Brooks Washington Wizards (6-10) head to Oklahoma City to face the Thunder (11-8), the first time the coach will face the team he coached for seven seasons.Thats a little ambitious if Im thinking theyre gonna give me an ovation, Brooks said Tuesday night, then added that he was hoping for a warm response.After taking a year off, Brooks took over as Wizards coach in April. Brooks first NBA head coaching gig was with the Thunder, from 2008-15. He went 338-207 with the Thunder, going from 22-47 in his first season to 50-32 in his second. Brooks coached the 2012 team to the NBA Finals, with Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant and James Harden.Brooks built strong relationships with Durant and Westbrook, and became known for his loyalty to his players, as well as for his winning.Scotty, hes my guy, honestly, Westbrook said. He gave me a real shot to be able to do some of the things and kind of let me go out there and make mistakes.When Westbrook made those mistakes, Brooks always had my back.Brooks was fired in 2015 after the Thunder missed the playoffs for the first time since the 2008-09 season. Hed taken the franchise to the playoffs for five straight seasons.We had a great run, Brooks said. Unfortunately it ended for me, but thats the business were in. I have a lot of respect for the organization. I have a tremendous amount of respect for the players that I coached.When Brooks was fired, Thunder general manager Sam Presti said the decision was not a reflection of this past season, but rather an assessment of what we feel is necessary at this point in time in order to continually evolve, progress and sustain.Presti and Brooks have spoken very little since Brooks said Tuesday. Brooks said that hes looking forward to his return, but also not looking back.I appreciate the opportunity [Presti] gave me, Brooks said. Theres no hard feelings. Its always a difficult decision for him to make and for me to handle. But you always have a choice on everything, to be better from it or be bitter and frustrated. I was disappointed, but I should have been. But thats part of it.In a statement to The Oklahoman, Presti said, When you look at the history of the Oklahoma City Thunder, Scott holds a special place. We all have great appreciation and respect for his contributions as the head coach of the Thunder during his tenure here. I know everyone is looking forward to seeing him back on the sidelines in The Peake.He set the tone for a lot of guys coming into the league and what it was like to be a professional and how we go about our work and our business, Thunder forward Nick Collison said. Hes very important to what weve built here, no question about that. 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Both players have lower body injuries that will keep them out of the lineup until at least January 31, which is the first game they can be activated from IR. SEATTLE -- The Houston Astros still have time to atone for their September collapse last season, and they took a big step in the right direction Friday night. The 6-0 win over Seattle and ace pitcher Felix Hernandez moved the Astros (77-71) one game closer to the Mariners, Tigers and Yankees in the American League wild-card standings.The barely-breathing Astros can take push themselves further into the crowded group of contenders with a victory Saturday, which would not only win the series but would also put Houston in a tie with Seattle among the teams chasing Baltimore and Toronto for the two wild-card spots.The Astros will turn to Mike Fiers (10-7) in the second game of the three-game series with the Mariners on Saturday night. Fiers is coming off his shortest outing of the season, having allowed seven runs in just 2 1/3 innings of a 9-5 loss to the Cubs last Sunday.Big games like this, Fiers said after that performance, I need to lock it in and play better than I did.Hell get another shot Saturday night, although Fiers has a pretty tough act to follow. Friday starter Collin McHugh shut out the Mariners for seven innings, allowing just two hits, as Houston kept its chances of a second consecutive wild-card berth alive. McHugh has now beaten Seattle in all four of his starts against the Mariners this season.We just match up pretty well with them -- me, specifically, McHugh said after dropping his season ERA against Seattle to 1.36 this season. Whether its pitch mix or this venue, Ive been able to have some success against them.Seattles Hernandez had quite the opposite kind of night. Having never pitched in a postseason game, Hernandez was in the rare position of taking the mound foor a meaningful September game at Safeco Field and fell flat.dddddddddddde certainly was not on top of his game tonight, manager Scott Servais said after Fridays loss, which snapped an eight-game losing streak and dropped Seattle to three games behind co-wild-card leaders Toronto and Baltimore with just 15 games remaining.The Mariners (78-69) are hoping for better results from Saturday starter James Paxton, a 27-year-old left-hander who can be dominant but can also be frustratingly inconsistent. Paxton turned in his best outing of the season on Aug. 7, when he looked to be on his way to a complete-game win over the Angels before taking a line drive off his left elbow one out into the ninth. He returned to the mound three weeks later but hasnt been nearly as dominant; hes still looking for his first win of September.Neither team can afford a loss as the remaining games dwindle and the distance separating them from the Blue Jays and Orioles looks harder and harder to overcome. Houston did the early damage but might need a sweep just to stay in realistic contention, while Seattle cant afford to lose again Saturday.Weve still got a lot of baseball left to play, Servais said. Were still in a very competitive spot. But (Fridays performance) is not what you wanted to see.For the Astros, the momentum of a Friday win could set the tone for this series and beyond.When youre going into a little bit of a playoff push like this, having the experience of last year, and knowing what it takes, I think that can be a little bit of an advantage for us, Houstons McHugh said. ' ' '