SAN DIEGO -- Chris Denorfia pumped both fists as he rounded third base on his home run trot, almost as if flexing his muscles. . San Diego badly needed a clutch hit and Denorfia provided it with a two-run shot with one out in the eighth that carried the Padres to a 2-1 win Wednesday over the Arizona Diamondbacks, who had been the last unbeaten team in the major leagues. "I think there was a collective sigh of relief from the team there," Denorfia said. "Were kind of off to slow start offensively, and to be able to pick up our pitchers today, who did such an outstanding job, was really important. Its something we can build off." Denorfias clutch shot just to the right of 396-foot sign in straightaway centre field -- his first of the season -- came on a 2-1 pitch from David Hernandez (0-1). Cameron Maybin was aboard on a walk. "That was pretty much all I got right there, but thats enough, as they say," Denorfia said. Centre fielder Chris Young lost his glove over the fence trying to make a leaping grab. The ball hit the glove as both cleared the fence. Someone from the Padres bullpen retrieved it for him. "You never know," Padres manager Bud Black said. "Cool day and the ball didnt seem to be carrying. I knew he hit it good. In that part of the park, theres a homer there. Weve seen a lot of homers in that area. It stayed in the air long enough." Denorfia is a .358 hitter (24-for-67) against the Diamondbacks. "Denorfia is a dead fastball hitter and thats his strength," Diamondbacks catcher Miguel Montero said. "If youre going to hit it, hit it. Unfortunately, we fell behind 2-1 and I dont want to go to 3-1 and throw an off (speed) pitch. It was probably a bad pitch, a little out over. He was looking dead red and he put a really good swing on it." Ernesto Frieri (1-0) threw 1 1-3 innings, and Huston Street pitched a perfect ninth for his first save with the Padres. Until the homer, the Padres had only one baserunner advance as far as second. Arizona was trying for the first 5-0 start in franchise history. Hernandez had replaced Joe Saunders, who allowed four hits over seven innings in his season debut. He struck out four and walked two. "Joe was outstanding," Montero said. ""He mixed pitches, he worked and he battled." San Diegos Cory Luebke struggled in the first inning, when he threw 43 pitches and walked four. With two-outs, he loaded the bases by walking Chris Young and then forced in Willie Bloomquist with a walk to Jason Kubel. Luebke struck out Paul Goldschmidt to end the threat. Luebke then threw 61 pitches over his final 4 1-3 innings. He allowed one run and four hits, struck out five and walked four. With two outs in the second, Bloomquist hit a ball off the top of the wall in left field that was ruled a triple. Three of the umpires went in for a video review and upheld the call. Bloomquist was stranded when Aaron Hill flied out to centre. Arizona loaded the bases again in the seventh on a single and two walks before Frieri got Kubel to pop up to second baseman Orlando Hudson. Luebke allowed one run and four hits in 5 1-3 innings, struck out five and walked four. NOTES: Bloomquist extended his hitting streak to 11 games. ... The series concludes Thursday night when Arizonas Ian Kennedy (1-0, 4.05) is scheduled to start against Anthony Bass (0-1, 2.25). Bass will start in place of Dustin Moseley. Bass made three starts for San Diego last year, including his big league debut on June 13 at Colorado. ... Joe Wieland is the leading contender to start for the Padres on Saturday night at Los Angeles, which would be his major league debut. Wieland was one of two prospects acquired from Texas for Mike Adams on July 31. ... Moseley, on the 15-day DL with what manager Bud Black calls "extensive damage" in his right shoulder, said he doesnt want to rush into a decision whether to have surgery or rehab the injury. He was placed on the DL on Sunday, a day after allowing five runs against the Los Angeles Dodgers. [url=http://www.ravensofficialteamstore.com/autographed-james-ihedigbo-jersey-cf... Ihedigbo Jersey . -- Veronica Felibert left the LPGA Tour event in Canada on Sunday with the intention of trying to qualify Monday for the NW Arkansas Championship. . Living in Bosnia at the time, his parents were both Elvis Presley fans but his dad was also a huge Bruce Lee buff. [url=http://www.ravensofficialteamstore.com/autographed-ray-rice-jersey-rw-92.ht... . In a "Bah humbug!" moment, Carmelo Anthony jokingly suggested the halftime music messed up the mood, offering that among a couple of reasons for the Knicks slow start Sunday. [url=http://www.ravensofficialteamstore.com/autographed-haloti-ngata-jersey-qh-1... Ngata Signed Jersey . Nobody. Today, nobody, not even Czech Republic coach Michal Bilek, can imagine the national team without him. . You have to give the New Jersey Devils their due, and I dont think anybody has; certainly not the fans that came to the Staples Center in Los Angeles for what they expected to be a coronation in Game 4.DALLAS -- After Vince Carter pumped up the crowd, O.J. Mayo kept knocking down shots. Mayo scored 30 points, including a career-high seven 3-pointers, and Carter got the fans going in Dallas home opener with a powerful dunk and high-flying block to help the Mavericks remain unbeaten against Charlotte with a 126-99 victory on Saturday night. "He was locked in," Carter said of Mayo. "He was worried about his shot a couple of days ago, and even early in the game. And I just said, Just shoot. Just shoot it like youre 5 for 5 instead of 1 for 5." Mayo fed off Carter, too. He had a three-point play and his first 3-pointer less than a minute after Carters emphatic first-quarter dunk -- reminiscent of his "Vinsanity" days -- over Bobcats centre Bismack Biyombo. Carter then brought fans to their feet again by chasing down Kemba Walker and sending his breakaway layup attempt into the stands in the second quarter. Dallas, which improved to 16-0 all-time against Charlotte, trailed 53-52 when Mayo put the Mavericks ahead for good on a 3-pointer with 1:01 left in the first half. Shawn Marion followed with a three-point play, and Darren Collison hit a running 34-footer at the buzzer for a 61-53 lead. Collison started the second half with another 3-pointer, and Mayo finished the 24-8 run with a 3 that made it 76-61. The Mavericks scored 36 points in the third quarter after getting outscored by Utah 37-13 in that period in their first loss Thursday. "Once we got on the plane, a couple of us popped in the film and saw that our energy, effort, we were so casual during the entire third quarter, so we wanted to come out with an attack mentality and really just get after it," Mayo said. Carter had 18 points, and the 14-year veteran was 4 of 8 from 3-point range. The Mavs had 16 3-pointers as Rick Carlisle became the third coach to win 200 games with Dallas. Don Nelson (339) and original Mavericks coach Dick Motta (329) are the others. "You make 16 3s, youre not going to lose many games, and it was a bit of a deodorant for some of our other transgressions," Carlisle said. "We look to make strides, mild as they may be, and get better." Ramon Sessions led Charlotte with 22 points. Former Mavericks centre Brendan Haywood had 14 points and 11 rebounds. Dallas centre Chris Kaman made his debut as a reserve. He got off to a slow start after missing two weeks with aa strained right calf, but he was a different player in the second half. [url=http://www.ravensofficialteamstore.com/autographed-ray-lewis-jersey-oz-47.h... Lewis Jersey. He made all five of his shots in the third quarter, including an alley-oop dunk on one of Collisons 10 assists, and finished with 16 points on 8-of-9 shooting. "I missed the last four preseason games and the first two, so Im kind of like a new player out there," said Kaman, expected to be a critical component as the Mavericks try to hold on until injured star Dirk Nowitzki returns. "Im just trying to fit in where I can and do what I can do." Collison also had 18 points. Former Charlotte coach Larry Brown, now at SMU after he was fired by the Bobcats two years ago, watched courtside as the Bobcats fell behind 31-19 after the first quarter before going on a 17-4 run for a 36-35 lead. Sessions had eight points during the spurt, including the go-ahead bucket. "It was a wonderful first half," Charlotte coach Mike Dunlap said. "But unfortunately in the third quarter we gave up 36 points, so we hang our hat on our defence so we know where to start." Carlisle wasted no time going to Kaman, calling on him less than two minutes into the game. Carters entrance about five minutes later had a much bigger impact. After his big dunk, he hit a 3-pointer in the final seconds of the first quarter. "I think they just move the ball," Dunlap said of the Mavericks. "There are three or four teams that we show film of and the Mavericks is one of them. They call it their flow offence. They do a great job of moving the ball to find the open shooter." Walker had 10 points and was held to 10 shots a night after scoring a career-high 30 to lead the Bobcats past Indiana in their opener. "They played him different, so what he did was he adjusted his game," Dunlap said. "I really like the way he played. He didnt force things." NOTES: Mavericks G Rodrigue Beaubois was inactive after twisting his left ankle in practice Friday. . Shawn Marion had two blocks on Haywood in the first quarter. The Mavericks used the amnesty clause to dump Haywood in the off-season. . Bobcats G Gerald Henderson left in the third quarter with a left foot sprain and didnt return. . Mavericks TV announcer Mark Followill is out indefinitely after getting injured in a bike accident Saturday in Dallas. Hes been with the Mavericks for 12 seasons. ... Dallas is the only NBA team that hasnt lost to Charlotte. ' ' '