Complete results relates It was states the 17th Cup race at Texas, the track where the four- time Cup champion has the only two last- place finishes in his 552 career starts. The quarterbacks were hit hard on nine of their first 10 pass attempts, as the Rebels put together a school- record 11 sacks and set another mark by holding the Bulldogs to minus- 51 yards rushing. They' ll all hear about it before Jason Schmidt takes the mound Wednesday " We don' t want the same situation as last year in the playoffs, when Philly threw at Manny and we didn' t retaliate " Martin said, referring to last fall' s NL championship series against the Phillies " We don' t want to be known as a team that doesn' t have each other' s backs " The late shenanigans marred Los Angeles' highest- scoring home performance in 30 years. The Lakers' next game is Wednesday night in Houston, and the Trail Blazers' next game is at home the same night against Dallas.

The rest of the North appears much like last year- balanced or mediocre depending on semantics . Sheffield said he doesn' t believe his career is over " No " he told The Detroit News " It ain' t close " Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press . Tayshaun Prince had 17 points and Antonio McDyess 15 for the Pistons, who couldn' t stop the Nets once Carter got going " Nothing went right today . Hammond has also been an assistant coach in Detroit and previously worked on the bench and in the front office with the Los Angeles Clippers and the Minnesota Timberwolves . McHale had argued with Corbin periodically through the first quarter, especially when Al Jefferson was called for traveling on what appeared to be a legal jump- stop.

Bixler, Pittsburgh' s second- round selection in the 2004 First- Year Player Draft, spent the 2007 season with Indianapolis He hit 274 with five homers, 51 RBIs and 28 stolen bases Wilson was put on the DL retroactive to Friday Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press . Minter, who spent 10 years with the Carolina Panthers, told the Daily Nebraskan that when he played under Osborne " It felt like a family atmosphere " Now it' s like Fort Knox " Minter said . Atlanta was never able to get the margin back to single digits in the fourth . James was moving across the lane on defense when he ran into the 7- foot- 2 Mutombo, whose sharp elbows have dropped more than a few NBA players over the years " I warned LeBron before the game to watch out " said Cavaliers guard Eric Snow, who played with Mutombo in Philadelphia " I' ve seen him take out teammates and opponents . Nelson said he was unsure if Maggette would join the club on the road trip Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. Ready to pick a winner? Chevrolet has shown some recent dominance at Phoenix, winning five in a row and seven of the last eight.

While the Association of Minor League Umpires originally balked, it agreed after MLB put in writing how the checks would be conducted and what they would be used for " This agreement will help preserve integrity and maintain public confidence in professional baseball, while protecting the fundamental rights and privacy concerns of minor league umpires " AMLU president Shaun Francis said Friday " We' ve been assured that issues like routine credit problems alone, will not disqualify an umpire from working in MLB " The AMLU' s decision followed a conversation between the union and the commissioner' s office " The office of the commissioner explained in detail why it was proceeding with the background checks and how it would respond to information received as a result of those background checks " management lawyer Frank Coonelly said " The AMLU asked the office of the commissioner to memorialize that discussion, and the office of the commissioner was happy to do so " The union for major leaguers, the World Umpires Association, has not agreed to wider background checks, asking that umpiring crews for postseason series be expanded from six to seven as part of any agreement Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press . Pat Riley, who holds the same dual roles in Miami, has placed himself on and taken himself off the Heat bench . The Boilermakers will take on an opponent from the Atlantic Coast Conference# 8226; Minnesota' s appearance in the Insight Bowl will be its fifth consecutive bowl game and seventh in the past eight seasons The Gophers( 6- 6) will meet a Big 12 team Dec . Only three teams- the Pistons, Thunder and Grizzlies- had enough money under the cap to offer Boozer a substantial deal . Both teams had hoped to be in Glendale, Ariz, a week later, playing for the national title. As in previous appellate arguments, Oklahoma again stressed innocent players shouldn' t be punished because of rules violations by other individuals and that " without the university' s assistance, the NCAA could not have proven any NCAA violations " I feel like we stated our case very well Basically, the facts are not in dispute.

The Sonics had used a 12- 1 surge to go up 38- 29 on Jerome James' inside basket with 10: 50 to go in the second quarter . Hall wasn' t the star of the Louisville game- that honor belonged to wide receiver Amarri Jackson, who ran for two touchdowns and passed for another- but he was, as always, a major factor His best asset is a lightning- quick first step . Although it would be difficult for the financially challenged Rays to absorb the approximately$ 2 million left on Martinez' s contract this year, sources say Tampa Bay has concluded it can do that without subtracting a higher- priced player such as left- hander Scott Kazmir at the same time- at least until the offseason . Buford, who attended Creighton, played for the Miami Heat, Philadelphia 76ers, Memphis Grizzlies, Sacramento Kings and New Jersey Nets He also has played for teams in Greece, Italy and Ukraine Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press .

Updated: June 1, 2008, 4: 29 PM ET Lieberthal signs one- day contract, retires with Phillies Comment Email Print Share Associated Press PHILADELPHIA- Former catcher Mike Lieberthal signed a one- day minor league contract Sunday and officially retired as a member of the Phillies . Lakers at Phoenix 7: 30PM 10: 30PM TNT Game 3- Thu April 26 Phoenix at L A . I slept in his garage so I would be able to see my wife, who was, at the time, my girlfriend It could be absolutely freezing in there . The funny thing is we' re going to get better and better " Mincey didn' t stop there, either " Our defense, if we come out with the right state of mind, playing hard, we should come out with a good victory " he said " I can' t say how[ good . Desmond Mason scored 26 points off the bench and reserve Mike James added 18 points and 11 assists for the Bucks, who lost their fifth in a row overall and seventh straight against the Lakers since November 2001 " It' s got to end " Redd said " We play well in each game on the road. In a deafening introduction and a first- quarter run that helped Boston open a double- digit lead, the change was immediate.

Soria, who was second in the American League with 42 saves last season, is 1- 0 with seven saves in as many opportunities and a 2 08 ERA in eight relief appearances this season . But some thought they would have to move Mike James to avoid losing him to free agency, a la Donyell Marshall . Armstrong said the Mariners, who last made the playoffs in 2001, expected to draw about 2 million in the struggling economy before they signed Griffey " If he plays and we draw and we win, he ought to get more money " Armstrong said last month " I hope I write those checks " Sales of tickets to individual Mariners games begin on Saturday . Smith by the neck on a breakaway, setting off the free- for- all Also penalized: Denver' s J R . Tulsa: Tulsa safety Kedrick Alexander, who was suspended last season after pleading guilty to a burglary charge, will not be permitted to play this season after the NCAA denied an appeal, the school said.

But it' s just not where it needs to be, unfortunately " Fifth- year senior Austin Ransom moved from wide receiver to weakside linebacker to replace Murray and has started every game this season Redshirt freshman Tristan Roberts is the backup The No 23 Panthers( 4- 1) play at Navy( 4- 2) on Saturday Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press . Updated: April 30, 2008, 7: 05 PM ET Injuries force Rockies to make flurry of roster moves Comment Email Print Share Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO- Colorado Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki returned to Denver to have an MRI exam on his left leg, forcing the Rockies to make a flurry of roster moves Wednesday . Dallas' Avery Johnson and Denver' s George Karl became the first to clip on the little wires when their teams met in a game shown on TNT on Thursday night . He was accompanied by his girlfriend and his family, including father Dell Curry, a 16- year NBA veteran . 3, 2002, when top- ranked Miami dropped after beating Rutgers 42- 17 and No 2 Oklahoma moved up after a 27- 11 victory over No 13 Colorado. It was good for me and it was good for my team " Nuggets coach Jeff Bzdelik considered having Anthony come off the bench against the Pistons after last year' s rookie sensation struggled through the first five games Anthony ended up starting, but he clearly got the message. It' s clear that the fallout from the Mitchell report, and the Rocket' s response to it, has intruded on many lives in the Houston area.

Soriano appeared in back- to- back games on Monday and Tuesday, recording a save on Tuesday . It hurts when something like that happens, and we lost the game " Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press . 51 ERA in 10 starts this year after winning 19 games each of the past two seasons Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press . Dumervil' s mother( she and Frank Gachelin split several years ago) was a big Elvis Presley fan, which accounts for the kid' s catchy first name- though he prefers to go by his nickname " Kool " He' s so laid- back, you can' t help but call him Kool " Louisville defensive tackle Montavious Stanley said . I had told them long ago that I wanted to coach if they wanted me " And, obviously, they felt that they were better served going a different direction, which is well within their right " he said " I both accept that and yet at the same time, respectfully disagree with that decision " By the middle of this week, all the Rockets were ready to offer Van Gundy was a senior consulting position.