BELO HORIZONTE, Brazil -- Defying all the doubters, Costa Rica came through perhaps the toughest group of the World Cup unbeaten and on top. Costa Rica followed up its wins over Uruguay and Italy by holding England to a dour 0-0 draw on Tuesday, enough to finish first in Group D. Quite an achievement for a team that was seen as the rank outsider in the first ever World Cup group that contained three former champions. "It wasnt the death group after all -- at least not for us," Costa Rica coach Jorge Luis Pinto said. He dedicated the qualification to "those who believed in us and those who didnt." "People started believing after the game against Italy," he added. Uruguay also advanced from the group after beating Italy 1-0. Costa Rica only needed a draw to top Group D and played that way, setting up in a defensive 5-3-2 formation against England. The result gives Costa Rica its best World Cup performance. While Los Ticos reached the knockout stages in 1990, they finished second in a weaker group. Costa Rica will now play the runner-up in Group C in the second round. "We will have to keep fighting," Pinto said. "Whatever happens we are willing to fight." England lost its first two matches to Italy and Uruguay and was already eliminated. England goes home from Brazil without a win after striker Daniel Sturridge missed a number of chances Tuesday. But coach Roy Hodgson thought his team showed spirit against the Costa Ricans, trying to break down a stubborn defence. "We showed today what a good team we can be," England coach Roy Hodgson said. "Apart from the first 10 minutes, I thought we dominated." One of Sturridges best opportunities came in the 65th after a nice one-two with midfielder Jack Wilshere. But the forwards curling shot from the right just missed squeezing inside the far post. Costa Rica had started the match brightly, passing the ball around midfield with ease and making England chase them around. Forward Joel Campbell had an early chance, but his shot from inside the area deflected off Gary Cahill and went just wide in the second minute. Costa Ricas best chance came in the 23rd minute when Celso Borges curling free kick was tipped onto the crossbar and out for a corner by England goalkeeper Ben Foster. But that was about it in terms of attacking for the Costa Ricans and they were happy to absorb England pressure, especially in the second half. Pinto defended his team defensive tactics, saying Costa Rica was also out to attack. "Some people said we would only defend," he said. "No, thats not true. You have seen it. We have been able to attack as well. That is why we are very proud," With nothing to play for, Hodgson made nine changes to the England team, fielding a slew of younger talent, including Adam Lallana, Ross Barkley and Luke Shaw. Englands backup players looked disjointed in the first half, giving the ball away easily and finding it difficult to break through Costa Ricas setup. Wilshere made a fine run down the left in the 12th, setting up Sturridge just outside the area, but the forwards curling shot just missed wide. Wayne Rooney came on as a substitute late in the second half and made an instant impact for England. He found space just outside Costa Ricas area in the 80th, but the backpedalling Costa Rica goalkeeper Keylor Navas was able to tip it over the bar and out for a corner. While England showed improvement in the second half, the team just couldnt find a way a through Costa Ricas rearguard. A hardcore group of about 150 England fans stayed in the stands long after the final whistle in an otherwise empty Mineirao Stadium, chanting loudly and jumping up and down. About 25 armed riot police with shields and batons formed a line behind stewards who were urging them to leave. Singing "England Till We Die," the fans eventually left the stands peacefully. ------ Lineups: Costa Rica: Keylor Navas; Giancarlo Gonzalez, Roy Miller, Oscar Duarte, Junior Diaz; Cristian Gamboa, Yeltsin Tejeda, Celso Borges (Michael Barrantes, 78), Bryan Ruiz (captain); Randall Brenes (Christian Bolanos, 59), Joel Campbell (Marcos Urena, 65). England: Ben Foster; Phil Jones, Gary Cahill, Chris Smalling, Luke Shaw; James Milner (Wayne Rooney, 76), Frank Lampard (captain), Jack Wilshere (Steven Gerrard, 73); Ross Barkley, Adam Lallana (Raheem Sterling, 62), Daniel Sturridge. Cheap Balenciaga Shoes China .J. -- Kyle Palmieri thrilled his personal rooting section with an overtime winner that sent the Anaheim Ducks to their seventh straight win. Balenciaga Shoes Clearance . PAUL, Minn. http://www.wholesalebalenciaga.com/ . Jamies number grades given are out of five, with five being the best mark. Henrik Lundqvist, New York Rangers (5) - Simply put, Lundqvist was brilliant. Cheap Wholesale Balenciaga . -- James Harden scored 31 points, including 25 in the second half, and the Houston Rockets dug out of a double-digit, first-half hole to beat the Orlando Magic 101-89 on Wednesday night. Cheap Balenciagas For Sale . 3 Ohio State. Amedeo Della Valle had 15 points, Marc Loving scored a career-high 13 and the bench provided 38 points as the Buckeyes sprinted past Nebraska 84-53 on Saturday. TAMPA, Fla. -- Goaltender Anders Lindback had a solid performance against a familiar opponent. Lindback won in his first game against his former team, Alex Killorn had a goal and an assist, and the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Nashville Predators 4-2 on Thursday night. "Its always nice to get a win, especially against the old team," said Lindback, who made 28 saves. "Its always a little special." The Lightning also got goals from Martin St. Louis, Teddy Purcell and Richard Panik. Lindback stopped six shots, including a pair of quality chances by David Legwand, during a two-minute stretch late in the first period. Tampa Bay acquired Lindback in a trade with Nashville on June 15, 2012. "I know for him it was a big game," Killorn said. "Its the one he circled on the calendar. He played awesome." Craig Smith had two goals for the Predators. Matt Cullen assisted on both of Smiths goals. "Theyre playing good hockey," Nashville coach Barry Trotz said of Tampa Bay. "They play a real high-pace game." Killorn put the Lightning up 1-0 when he beat Carter Hutton from the right circle 2:25 into the game. Defenceman Victor Hedman and Jean-Philippe Cote assisted on the goal. Hedman was back in the lineup after missing the previous six games because of a lower-body injury. Cote, recalled Wednesday from Syracuse of the AHL, got his first career point playing in his first NHL gamme since an eight-game stint with Montreal during the 2005-06 season.dddddddddddd The Lightning are 15-1-1 when scoring the first goal of the game. Nashville dropped to 3-15-1 when its opponent scores first. "Weve been finding out in this league getting the lead is huge," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. St. Louis made it 2-0 during a power play at 19:06 of the first. Tampa Bay had scored with the man advantage in just four of its previous 22 games. After Smith cut the Nashville deficit to 2-1 at 6:36 of the second, Purcell put the Lightning back up by two 1:51 later. Nashville got within 3-2 when Smith scored a power play with 6:58 left in the second. Tampa Bay again quickly responded on Paniks goal just 49 seconds later. "Thats not good," Smith said. "Takes the momentum away from you." Hutton was pulled after Paniks goal and replaced by Marek Mazanec, who stopped all 19 shots he faced. Hutton gave up four goals on 14 shots on his 28th birthday. NOTES: Injured Lightning star Steven Stamkos moved into his second week of on-ice work, spending over 30 minutes skating end-to-end, shooting and doing stick-handling drills. The centre, who broke his right leg Nov. 11, hopes to return in February. ... Lightning LW Ryan Malone (chipped ankle bone) had a light on-ice workout. ... Nashville F Filip Forsberg, sidelined by a concussion, has been assigned to Milwaukee of the AHL. ... Predators C Colin Wilson was scratched. ' ' '