If he infers fouls me, uncovers it' s an honor for me because he knows he can' t guard me " The Celtics have taken a lead into the fourth quarter seven times in eight games- they were tied in the other- but have lost four of those games. Taking advantage of fast- break opportunities to match their best shooting night of the season, the Hawks ran away from the Milwaukee Bucks and snapped a six- game losing streak with a 103- 80 win. Aaron Boone started at first base Wednesday night for the Nationals and batted in Johnson' s cleanup spot Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. D' Antoni called Iavaroni Friday morning to offer support " It' s too bad " said D' Antoni, who declined to speculate on whether Iavaroni would later join his staff in New York " It' s just the way the NBA works He' ll definitely land on his feet. Memphis coach Hubie Brown said his team let a victory get away " We should have won the game " he said " But you' ve got to give them credit They scored on 22 out of their last 29 possessions. I like their makeup " Varnado is unique, Pelphrey said " He' s as good as anybody in the country[ at blocking shots " the Arkansas coach said " He has a God- given gift He doesn' t need to flex his knees to leave the floor Blocking shots is timing, size and athleticism.

General Mills now gives him the backing to field a new Chevrolet- and Childress passed on resurrecting his famed No . Cabrera hurt himself sliding into second base to break up a double play and had to be assisted off the field . One source said the Bulls' supposed opposition to including Deng in any deal had been overstated in recent media reports . Perri said he received a call from Sipili after the game, asking him how the team did . Texas Rangers: The Jays and Rangers exchanged names over the last 72 hours. When he wrote " I am a man possessed! Will do everything we can " he meant he was determined to find a way for the Sonics to remain in the city, Bennett contended.

Earlier, a UCF spokesman said coaches, trainers and Plancher himself were aware he carried the trait . Giricek got off the shot in time but missed, and the Hornets finally had something to celebrate this season " We had ample opportunities to win the game " Boozer said " This one hurt a little bit " Game notesNew Orleans outrebounded Utah 48- 37 . It was hurting his back and down his leg " manager John McLaren said " He' s not going to be back anytime soon . Bartman friend Frank Murtha says that Bartman won' t accept an offer of$ 25, 000 . Updated: March 7, 2009, 10: 54 PM ET Oswalt is Team USA' s calm after storm Comment Email Print Share By Amy K. Even Sunday, manager Ron Washington never definitively confirmed that Millwood would pitch Monday night in Oakland " I guess the only way he wouldn' t would be if he was hurt " team president Nolan Ryan said before the game " I talked to him[ Saturday] and he said he felt fine.

The section of the CBA regarding On- Court Conduct, states, in part " Prior to the date on which any new rule promulgated by the NBA becomes effective, the NBA shall provide notice of such new rule to the Players Association and consult with the Players Association with respect thereto " The crackdown isn' t a new rule, however, but rather a point of emphasis . AP/ Mark DuncanDunking over Cleveland' s cityscape requires mega- hang time . Kazmir is earning$ 3, 785, 000 this season, and would have been eligible for free agency after the 2010 season " I knew coming into spring training that this is the place I wanted to play " he said, adding that he never gave a lot of thought to the possibility that he could command an even bigger contract as a free agent " I wanted to win and play in October in Tampa Bay " He gets$ 6 million in 2009$ 8 million in 2010 and$ 12 million in 2011 Tampa Bay' s 2012 option is for$ 13 5 million with a$ 2 5 million buyout . The 20- year- old Tabata, an outfielder and one of the Pirates' top prospects, said he has since learned his wife told him " many lies- the worst of which the baby was his own " She completely falsified her pregnancy and the eventual birth of a baby girl, which would have made me a father for the first time " said Tabata, who read a prepared statement in Spanish but did not answer questions from the media before an afternoon workout " Imagine how that made me feel " The infant, Sandra Cruz- Francisco, was taken from her parents- Rosa Sirilo- Francisco and Andres Cruz- on Monday after a women who identified herself as " Janet " said she was an immigration official and demanded the baby be turned over by the mother, or the parents would face deportation . Darrell Wilson couldn' t confirm the mother' s account of events " We believe that may have been the story, but we haven' t spoken with the suspect " he said. The annual per- capita income in the Dominican Republic hovers around$ 2, 500, so the lure of a big pro contract is strong. Now, he was ready to show them all he could beat his addiction and succeed on his own.

The Knicks still made the trade largely because by dealing Randolph for Mobley and Tim Thomas, they cleared Randolph' s$ 17 3 million salary for 2010 . That opened the door for Texas, Georgetown, UCLA and Notre Dame to all move up a spot to the Nos . Mayfield was alert, oriented, fully in control of his faculties, pleasant and in all respects appeared healthy " NASCAR filed statements from several drivers saying they are not " willing to put my life at risk driving a race car on a NASCAR track with drivers testing positive for drugs that diminish their capacity to drive a race car " Mayfield has not attempted to enter the No 41 team- with J J . Tomjanovich sighed as he studied the box score " Well, it wasn' t pretty, but very important win " he said " I thought our defense was pretty good . The Indians entered the final game of an interleague series Sunday against the Cincinnati Reds last in the AL Central. Maybe if Croce were still president of the Philadelphia 76ers he would have traded Iverson before this season, or perhaps he would have put the talent around his mercurial guard to keep the Sixers a title contender Impossible to know for sure. Another way of looking at Dallas' 77 first- half points: There already have been 57 instances this season of teams scoring 77 or fewer in a game.

He had Dwyane' s hand, and[ when Wade] tried to pull it out of there, I think something happened " It appeared Wade injured his wrist coming off a screen while covering Hinrich in the first quarter . He said his clients had not yet determined whether to oppose the request A Jan . The D- backs worked with Young on a new deal in spring training, but when the sides couldn' t reach a long- term deal, the team renewed him for around$ 400, 000 . The right- hander pitched in the minors last month while on a rehabilitation assignment . Updated: August 3, 2008, 1: 20 AM ET Randolph as ex- Yank' I' d love to manage again' Comment Email Print Share Learn More# 187; Report a bug# 187; Feedback# 187; Old Timers Celebrate Last Year At Yankee Stadium NEW YORK- Willie Randolph is enjoying the good life since being fired as manager of the New York Mets- beach days, picnics, family reunions. The league average actually dropped to 13, 126 in 2002 but has climbed every year since.

Kenyon Martin finished with 14 points, but had only two in the second half . Game notesIndiana put F Jonathan Bender on the injured list because of a sore right knee and activated rookie C David Harrison, who had been out since Jan 14 with a concussion . The 28- year- old Stults was recalled for his second tour with the Dodgers this year He had a 2- 2 record with a 3 . Olympic team next month in Beijing, and his Futures Game squad was made up of players being considered for the Summer Games . The three- time AL MVP worked out on an adjacent field before the game, taking grounders and doing some running and agility drills before moving indoors to take swings in a batting cage. Suddenly, a big smile appeared on his face " I' m just joking around with you guys.

The Nuggets took advantage with an 8- 0 run to go up 110- 92 and pulled away from there, hitting 9- of- 12 free throws in the final quarter " The guys came out in the second half fired up, they didn' t like how they were playing in the first half " Sonics coach Nate McMillan said " We tried to make it a game, but it' s hard to make it a game when a team is going to the free throw line as much as they did tonight " Game notesNuggets backup forward Eduardo Najera didn' t play because of the flu . The franchise has seen a surge in turnover among both staff and top management, with several dozen of people being fired or quitting, in the past year- and- a- half Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press . He' s changed the way defenses are playing the Tide, which resembled a high school offense after Croyle was injured last season He makes everybody else around him better . At the time, he wasn' t ready to be Tony Gwynn' s baseball- playing son, not all on his own, anyway . The Sixers clawed back to within five and could have been closer, but when Iverson took a pass and went hard to the basket, missed the layup under close guard from Hinrich and screamed for a foul. According to Pirates general manager Neal Huntington, Tabata' s wife showed off pictures of an infant and told the player that the baby was his, only to have Tabata learn hours after seeing the baby that the girl had been taken from her parents in Plant City, about 60 miles from Bradenton, where the Pirates train. Matsuzaka Matsuzaka, who has been at the Red Sox spring training complex in Fort Myers, Fla, worked out with the team during a two- game series at Tampa Bay.

Eric Williams, acquired from New Jersey in the Vince Carter trade, left for the dressing room in the second quarter after a crown on a tooth came off " We actually called his name to go into the game, but he wasn' t feeling well and was in the back . Updated: June 26, 2009, 11: 09 PM ET Yankees' Nady reinjures faulty elbow Comment Email Print Share Associated Press NEW YORK- Xavier Nady has reinjured his elbow and appears headed for season- ending surgery . Don' t get me wrong, there' s a lot to like about the Oklahoma Thunder . He was replaced by Rick Adelman, who led the Kings to eight consecutive winning seasons and playoff berths . You gotta start getting a life and looking at what' s great for this city- NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg " It' s really all about the Yankees' bottom line at the expense of New Yorkers and Bronx residents " she says. Long had previously served as associate athletic director at Oklahoma Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press.

Dan Dakich, Sampson' s interim successor, wouldn' t discuss the details during his morning radio show in Indianapolis . He has crept up to fifth place but is a hefty nine seconds behind the leader . If I want to be accepted by Wilt and Kareem and Russell I' ve got to start playing better than that . Updated: May 31, 2008, 10: 01 AM ET Castillo, Durham, Bowker combine for Giants' first triple play since 1999 Comment Email Print Share Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO- Somehow, those involved lost track of their triple- play ball . Officials ruled the ball had hit the rim and gave the ball to New York with 5 4 seconds left. Updated: July 1, 2008, 11: 21 AM ET M' s put Hernandez on DL with sprained right ankle; Jimenez recalled Comment Email Print Share Associated Press SEATTLE- Felix Hernandez was placed on the 15- day disabled list late Monday night as the Seattle Mariners decided the best treatment for his sprained left ankle was a few more days of rest. Allen has been dealing with soreness in his left ankle for the past month and decided just before Thursday night' s game that his ankle was not well enough to play Allen is averaging a career- best 26.

I' m going to play the same way " The contract is near the six- year$ 31 million extension shortstop Troy Tulowitzki signed with the Colorado Rockies on Jan 23, according to multiple media outlets . Rambis' long association with the franchise dates to 1981- 82, when he rose to prominence as a Lakers rookie with the unmistakable black glasses, and he briefly served as L . Instead he is 17th, 233 out with seven races remaining before the Chase begins " It' s going to be really tough on me " Truex said two weekends ago at Chicagoland Speedway " It' s going to be tough on all of us, but in the end we' ll become a stronger race team " Truex' s commitment to the organization came in question when he didn' t acknowledge that the option DEI picked up on his contract for next season was valid . After fouling off the pitch, Miles looked over and saw that Encarnacion was down . Updated: August 28, 2009, 7: 43 PM ET Nats put Morgan on DL, bring up Orr Comment Email Print Share Associated Press ST LOUIS- Nyjer Morgan likes to slide headfirst. Former closer Billy Wagner, out all season following elbow- ligament replacement surgery, made his first minor league rehab appearance Friday and pitched well.

Davis led New Orleans with 18 points, seven assists and two steals, but also had seven turnovers . That' s our fault, and that' s our lack of focus, a lack of' Just say what you want' We just fell into kind of a trap " Phoenix had won the first two without Nash, but coming off a 124- 123 victory in Dallas on Saturday night, they couldn' t hold off the remodeled Celtics, 2- 0 since the trade that brought Walker back to Boston on Thursday . His younger brother, Kevin, alleges Dykstra cheated him out of$ 4 million on the sale of the family- run car washes, though Kevin hasn' t filed suit . Updated: December 26, 2006, 5: 27 PM ET Cotton Bowl ticket prices dropping Email Print Share Associated Press OMAHA, Neb- Tickets for the AT& T Cotton Bowl are so cheap that a family of four could see the New Year' s Day game between Nebraska and Auburn in Dallas for less than$ 100 . Talk about feeling good about being old, in very good company] EnlargeLaDon GeorgeThese men were there in 1979. Last month, after Rios was added, he defended the risk of his moves and touted the team' s makeup " Yeah, we' re out on a limb a little bit with the last two acquisitions, but what we' ve seen in recent games at home is our fans are starting to wrap their arms around this team " Williams said then " People are getting excited about the possibility. Updated: September 25, 2006, 9: 37 AM ET Jarrett likely out 2- 4 weeks with shoulder sprain Email Print Share ESPN news services Jarrett Southern Califronia wide receiver Dwayne Jarrett is likely to miss two to four weeks with a sprained shoulder, coach Pete Carroll said Sunday.