Estimated read time: 8-9 minutes
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TOP STORIES:
AF--PISTORIUS-UNFOLDING DRAMA
PRETORIA, South Africa — During breaks, Oscar Pistorius sometimes confers intensely with his chief defense lawyer. The double-amputee athlete occasionally sinks his head into his hands during graphic testimony. His televised murder trial is an unfolding drama, marked by tradition that seems quirky to the layman, technology that sometimes goes awry and the parsing of witness memories of the night that Pistorius fatally shot his girlfriend. By Christopher Torchia. UPCOMING: 800 words, photos by 7 a.m.
BKN--PACERS-ROCKETS
HOUSTON — James Harden and the Rockets were determined to make up for their most lopsided loss of the season when they got a second shot at Indiana on Friday night. Mission accomplished. Harden had 28 points and the Rockets handed the Eastern Conference-leading Pacers their biggest defeat of the season, using a huge third quarter to turn a close game into a 112-86 blowout that gave the Pacers their first three-game skid this season. By Kristie Rieken. SENT: 826 words, photos.
PRO BASKETBALL:
BKN--TRAIL BLAZERS-MAVERICKS
DALLAS — Dirk Nowitzki says he wasn't thinking about the last time the Dallas Mavericks blew a 30-point lead and lost. He was too busy trying to make sure it didn't happen again. Nowitzki scored 22 points, Devin Harris hit the go-ahead shot in the final minute and the Mavericks rallied in the fourth quarter after blowing their huge first-half lead, beating the Portland Trail Blazers 103-98 Friday night. By Schuyler Dixon. SENT: 858 words, photos.
NEW AND DEVELOPING:
GLF--CADILLAC CHAMPIONSHIP
DORAL, Fla. — Dustin Johnson was one of the few players who looked like he was having a good time at the Cadillac Championship. The new Blue Monster is bluer than ever with all the water in play. Throw in a relentless wind with gusts that topped 30 mph, and it lived up to its nickname. That would explain how none of the four players who tied for the lead, including Johnson, could manage better than 74. By Golf Writer Doug Ferguson. UPCOMING: 898 words, photos by 3:30 a.m.
BKC--HARVARD-YALE
NEW HAVEN, Conn. — Harvard became the first team to reach the NCAA tournament, earning their third straight bid on rival Yale's court. "You couldn't ask for much better," said senior guard Brandyn Curry, who had 14 points in in the 70-58 win over the Bulldogs on Friday night that secured the outright Ivy League championship. By Pat Eaton-Robb. SENT: 774 words, photos.
PRO FOOTBALL:
FBN--SHARPER-RAPE CHARGES
LOS ANGELES — A judge refused Friday to immediately release former NFL All-Pro safety Darren Sharper from jail in a Los Angeles rape case, but said she would have to free him soon if charges aren't filed in a similar case in Louisiana. By Brett Martel. SENT: 683 words, photos.
Also:
— MINNEAPOLIS — FBN--Vikings-Cassel. Person with knowledge of the situation tells AP Matt Cassel is re-signing with Vikings. By Jon Krawczynski. SENT: 578 words.
— NEW ORLEANS — FBN--Saints-Moves. AP source: Saints tell Sproles he'll be traded or cut; club cuts WR Moore. By Brett Martel. SENT: 642 words, photos.
— MINNEAPOLIS — FBN--Jared Allen. Agent says star DE Jared Allen ready for free agency. By Jon Krawczynski. SENT: 604 words.
— JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — FBN--Jaguars-Henne. Jaguars re-sign QB Henne to 2-year contract. By Mark Long. SENT: 696 words.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL:
BKC--T25-MVC-EVANSVILLE-WICHITA
ST. LOUIS — No. 2 Wichita State is still perfect. Calm and collected, too, in a 32nd straight win. The top-seeded Shockers stayed unbeaten with an 80-58 romp over Evansville in the quarterfinals of the Missouri Valley tournament Friday. By R.B. Fallstrom. SENT: 742 words, photos.
Also:
— COLUMBIA, S.C. — BKC--SCarolina-Martin. Gamecocks' coach Martin apologizes to fans for outburst at player during Florida game. By Pete Iacobelli. SENT: 769 words, photos.
— DURHAM, N.C. — BKC--T25-Duke-Parker. Duke's Parker faces tough stay-or-go decision. By Joedy McCreary
— SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — BKC--UC Santa Barbara-Fan Confrontation. UCSB fan arrested after confronting rival coach. SENT: 167 words.
AUTO RACING:
CAR--NASCAR-LAS VEGAS
LAS VEGAS — Joey Logano believes two facts are abundantly clear after he emerged from the organized chaos of NASCAR's first three-round knockout qualifying session Friday with the pole position at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. This new qualifying system is a whole lot more interesting than the previous system. And nobody is quite sure what they're doing yet. By Greg Beacham. SENT: 649 words, photos.
PRO HOCKEY:
HKN--SABRES-PANTHERS
SUNRISE, Fla. — Robert Luongo's return to Florida couldn't have been better. Luongo made 25 saves, while Dmitry Kulikov and Jesse Winchester each scored power-play goals to lead the Panthers over the Buffalo Sabres 2-0 on Friday night. Luongo, acquired in a trade with Vancouver on Tuesday, was in net for the first time for Florida since April 18, 2006. Luongo previously played for Florida from 2000-2006. By Paul Gereffi. SENT: 729 words, photos.
ALSO:
— NEWARK, N.J. — US--Obit-Carmen Berra. Wife of longtime Yankee Yogi Berra dies at 85. SENT: 385 words, photos.
— EDMONTON, Alberta — HKW--Szabados-Men's Pro League. Female goalie Szabados signing with men's team. SENT: 422 words, photos.
— SOC--Algarve Cup. Sweden eliminates US 1-0 at Algarve Cup, ends Americans' 2-year, 43-game unbeaten streak. SENT: 480 words.
— NEW YORK — SOC--MLS Referees Lockout. Major League Soccer locks out referees and other game officials day before season openers. SENT: 290 words.
— BARCELONA, Spain — SOC-Barcelona-Messi. Barcelona coach says something is wrong with Messi. SENT: 205 words, photos.
— SOCHI, Russia — OLY--Sochi-Paralympics. Putin declares Sochi Winter Paralympics open. SENT: 860 words, photos.
— NEW YORK — BKL--WNBA-CBA. WNBA board ratifies new CBA. By Doug Feinberg. SENT: 444 words.
Saturday's Time Schedule
TOP 25 BASKETBALL
Men
No. 1 Florida vs. No. 25 Kentucky, Noon
No. 2 Wichita State vs. Missouri State at the Scottrade Center, St. Louis, 2:35 p.m.
No. 3 Arizona at Oregon, 4 p.m.
No. 4 Duke vs. No. 14 North Carolina, 9 p.m.
No. 6 Villanova vs. Georgetown, 2 p.m.
No. 8 Kansas at West Virginia, Noon
No. 10 San Diego State vs. No. 21 New Mexico, 10:05 p.m.
No. 11 Louisville vs. No. 19 UConn, 2 p.m.
No. 12 Michigan vs. Indiana, 6 p.m.
No. 13 Creighton vs. Providence, 8 p.m.
No. 15 Cincinnati at Rutgers, Noon
No. 16 Iowa State vs. Oklahoma State, 2 p.m.
No. 18 SMU at No. 20 Memphis, Noon
No. 23 Oklahoma at TCU, 4 p.m.
No. 24 Iowa vs. Illinois, 8:30 p.m.
Women
No. 1 UConn vs. Cincinnati at Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, Conn., 2:30 p.m.
No. 2 Notre Dame vs. No. 14 N.C. State at Greensboro (N.C.) Coliseum, 5 p.m.
No. 3 Louisville vs. Houston at Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, Conn., 6 p.m.
No. 4 Stanford vs. Southern Cal at KeyArena, Seattle, 9 p.m.
No. 5 South Carolina vs. No. 12 Kentucky at The Arena at Gwinnett Center, Duluth, Ga., Noon
No. 6 Tennessee vs. No. 15 Texas A&M at The Arena at Gwinnett Center, Duluth, Ga., 2:30 p.m.
No. 7 West Virginia vs. TCU at Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, 7 p.m.
No. 9 Baylor vs. Kansas at Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, 2:30 p.m.
No. 10 Duke vs. No. 13 North Carolina at Greensboro (N.C.) Coliseum, 7:30 p.m.
No. 16 Nebraska vs. No. 19 Michigan Stateat Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, 5:55 p.m.
No. 18 Oklahoma State vs. Iowa State at Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Noon
No. 23 Iowa vs. Ohio State at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, 3:30 p.m.
No. 24 Rutgers vs. SMU at Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, Conn., Noon
NBA
Utah at Philadelphia, 7:30 p.m.
New York at Cleveland, 7:30 p.m.
Charlotte at Memphis, 8 p.m.
Orlando at San Antonio, 8:30 p.m.
Washington at Milwaukee, 9 p.m.
Atlanta at L.A. Clippers, 10:30 p.m.
NHL
Ottawa at Winnipeg, 3 p.m.
St. Louis at Colorado, 3 p.m.
Boston at Tampa Bay, 7 p.m.
Phoenix at Washington, 7 p.m.
Philadelphia at Toronto, 7 p.m.
Carolina at New Jersey, 7 p.m.
Columbus at Nashville, 8 p.m.
Minnesota at Dallas, 8:30 p.m.
Calgary at Vancouver, 10 p.m.
Montreal at San Jose, 10 p.m.
EXHIBITION BASEBALL
Washington (ss) vs. St. Louis at Jupiter, Fla., 1:05 p.m.
Atlanta (ss) vs. Washington (ss) at Viera, Fla., 1:05 p.m.
Miami vs. Atlanta (ss) at Kissimmee, Fla., 1:05 p.m.
N.Y. Yankees vs. Houston (ss) at Kissimmee, Fla., 1:05 p.m.
N.Y. Mets vs. Detroit at Lakeland, Fla., 1:05 p.m.
Houston (ss) vs. Philadelphia at Clearwater, Fla., 1:05 p.m.
Minnesota vs. Toronto at Dunedin, Fla., 1:05 p.m.
Boston (ss) vs. Baltimore (ss) at Sarasota, Fla., 1:05 p.m.
Pittsburgh vs. Tampa Bay at Port Charlotte, Fla., 1:05 p.m.
Arizona (ss) vs. LA Angels at Tempe, Ariz., 3:05 p.m.
Kansas City vs. Milwaukee at Phoenix, 3:05 p.m.
Chicago Cubs vs. Cincinnati at Goodyear, Ariz., 3:05 p.m.
Arizona (ss) vs. Chicago White Sox at Glendale, Ariz., 3:05 p.m.
Cleveland vs. San Diego at Peoria, Ariz., 3:05 p.m.
Los Angeles Dodgers (ss) vs. Texas at Surprise, Ariz., 3:05 p.m.
Seattle (ss) vs. San Francisco at Scottsdale, Ariz., 3:05 p.m.
Oakland vs. Colorado at Scottsdale, Ariz., 3:10 p.m.
Baltimore (ss) vs. Boston (ss) at Fort Myers, Fla., 7:05 p.m.
Seattle (ss) vs. LA Dodgers (ss) at Glendale, Ariz., 9:05 p.m.
MLS
Sporting Kansas City at Seattle FC, 3 p.m.
Columbus at D.C. United, 7 p.m.
New York at Vancouver, 7:30 p.m.
Montreal at FC Dallas, 8:30 p.m.
New England at Houston, 8:30 p.m.
Philadelphia at Portland, 10:30 p.m.
Real Salt Lake at Los Angeles, 10:30 p.m.
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