Estimated read time: 10-11 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
NBA-SCHEDULE
Spurs stretch streak, Thunder keep pace...Pacers halt skid
UNDATED (AP) — The San Antonio Spurs kept their lead in the NBA's Western Conference by earning their seventh straight win.
Manu Ginobili (MAN'-oo jih-NOH'-blee) scored 22 points and Tony Parker had 20 in the Spurs' 104-96 triumph over Chicago. Ginobili shot 9-for-11 from the field, including four 3-pointers. Parker scored 18 while San Antonio was building a 61-33 halftime lead.
Kawhi (kah-WY') Leonard added 16 points for San Antonio, which saw a 24-point, fourth-quarter lead shrink to eight before winning for the 10th time in 11 games.
D.J. Augustin (AW'-guhs-teen) had a team-high 24 points for the Bulls, who are 1-2 on their season-high, six-game homestand.
Oklahoma City remains a half-game behind the West-leading Spurs after Kevin Durant poured in 42 points to push the Thunder past the red-hot Rockets 106-98. Russell Westbrook scored 24 points, and Serge Ibaka (ih-BAH'-kah) added 12 points and 16 rebounds to help the Thunder end a two-game skid.
The Rockets ended a five-game winning streak despite James Harden's 28 points.
The Indiana Pacers have ended a season-high, four-game losing streak with a little help from a newcomer.
Andrew Bynum scored eight points and grabbed a season-high 10 rebounds in his Pacers debut as Indiana downed Boston 94-83. Bynum played just 15 minutes, but his first basket put the Pacers ahead to stay at 16-14.
David West finished with 24 points as the Eastern Conference-leading Pacers moved 1 1/2 games ahead of Miami.
In other NBA action:
— Memphis picked up its season-high seventh straight home win as Zach Randolph contributed 18 points and 12 rebounds to the Grizzlies' 109-99 decision over Portland. Marc Gasol (gah-SAHL') added a team-high 19 points, nine boards and seven assists to help the Grizzlies earn their third consecutive win overall and open a one-game lead over Phoenix for the final Western Conference playoff berth.
— Minnesota was a 112-101 winner over Milwaukee behind Kevin Love's 27 points, 10 rebounds and six assists. Kevin Martin chipped in 26 points and Jose Barea added 19 to the victory.
— Josh Smith scored 24 points and Rodney Stuckey added 23 in Detroit's 99-89 win against Sacramento. Andre Drummond added 15 points and eight rebounds for the Pistons, who took control by outscoring the Kings 20-11 in the third period.
NFL-MOVES
Cowboys cut Ware loose
UNDATED (AP) — The NFL free-agency signing period began on Tuesday, and the Dallas Cowboys made room under the salary cap by releasing DeMarcus Ware. The franchise sack leader was due to make $16 million this season, his 10th in the NFL.
Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones said he will attempt to re-sign Ware, who had a career-low six sacks last season and is recovering from offseason elbow surgery.
Elsewhere:
— The Chicago Bears have released eight-time Pro Bowl defensive end Julius Peppers, eliminating an $18 million salary cap hit. Peppers finished with just seven sacks, his lowest total in four seasons with Chicago and the fewest for him since he had a career-low 2 ½ with Carolina in 2007.
— Jonathan Martin, the offensive tackle at the center of the Miami Dolphins' bullying scandal, has been traded to the San Francisco 49ers for an undisclosed draft pick. Martin's move cross country brings him back to the Bay Area to be reunited with his former Stanford coach, Jim Harbaugh.
— The 49ers have released cornerback Carlos Rogers after three seasons. The Niners also have agreed to acquire quarterback Blaine Gabbert from the Jacksonville Jaguars for a sixth-round draft pick. And veteran place kicker Phil Dawson has received a new two-year contract after a sensational first season in San Francisco.
— The Browns have agreed to terms with strong safety Donte Whitner and reportedly have struck a deal with inside linebacker Karlos Dansby.
— The Indianapolis Colts have re-signed kicker Adam Vinatieri (vihn-uh-TEHR'-ee), hours before he was to become an unrestricted free agent. The Colts also have agreed to contract terms with free agent defensive end Arthur Jones
— The Washington Redskins have re-signed inside linebacker Perry Riley, keeping him off the open market hours before the start of free agency.
— The Atlanta Falcons have agreed to terms on a new three-year contract with defensive tackle Jonathan Babineaux, who had 49 tackles, two fumble recoveries, a sack and a forced fumble last season. The Falcons also released former Pro Bowl safety Thomas DeCoud.
— A person familiar with the negotiations says the Detroit Lions and running back Joique (JOYK) Bell have agreed to a $9.3 million, three-year contract, with $4.3 million guaranteed.
— A person familiar with the negotiations says Lions wide receiver Kevin Ogletree has agreed to a one-year contract.
— The Oakland Raiders have agreed to a five-year contract with offensive lineman Rodger Saffold and have re-signed running back Darren McFadden to a one-year contract.
— The Pittsburgh Steelers released linebacker LaMarr Woodley, with a post-June 1 designation to save money under the salary cap.
— A person familiar with the negotiations says the Dolphins and Pro Bowl left tackle Branden Albert have agreed to a contract that could be worth more than $45 million over five years. The person also says former Houston Texans defensive tackle Earl Mitchell has agreed to terms on a $16 million, four-year deal with Miami.
— The New York Giants have reached agreements with former Kansas City guard Geoff Schwartz and Oakland running back Rashad Jennings, according to the players. Former Seattle Seahawks linebacker O'Brien Schofield also agreed to a two-year, $8 million deal.
— The Tennessee Titans have agreed to terms with Chiefs running back, receiver and kick returner Dexter McCluster, who caught a career-high 53 passes for 611 yards in a Pro Bowl season last year.
— The Jaguars agreed to terms with former Denver Broncos guard Zane Beadles on a five-year contract worth $30 million.
— Left tackle Jared Veldheer and the Arizona Cardinals have agreed to a five-year contract worth $35 million, with $17 million guaranteed.
— Eugene Monroe is staying with the Baltimore Ravens after agreeing to a five-year contract.
— The Denver Broncos have revamped their defensive secondary by agreeing to a deal with Pro Bowl safety T.J. Ward.
— The Buffalo Bills have re-signed kicker Dan Carpenter to a four-year contract.
— The New York Jets have re-signed kicker Nick Folk to a multiyear contract, less than two weeks after placing the franchise tag on him.
NHL-SCHEDULE
Stars surprise Blues...Pens top Caps again
UNDATED (AP) — The Dallas Stars were winners in their first game since teammate Rich Peverley collapsed on the bench. And they did it against the NHL's best team.
Jamie Benn scored 3:42 into overtime to give the Stars a 3-2 triumph at St. Louis. Benn also assisted on Antoine Roussel's (roo-SEHLZ') goal early in the third period, giving Dallas a 2-1 lead. But the Western Conference-leading Blues were able to move two points ahead of Anaheim after Roman Polak forced OT.
The Stars' home game against Columbus was postponed Monday night after Peverley fell ill with a heart problem. He remained hospitalized in stable condition on Tuesday while undergoing tests.
Teammate Alex Chiasson (CHAY'-sahn) was being treated after becoming despondent about Peverley's plight. He didn't join the team for its trip to St. Louis.
The Pittsburgh Penguins have widened their lead in the Eastern Conference by continuing their recent domination of the Washington Capitals.
Marc-Andre Fleury made 20 of his 32 saves in the third period as the Pens blanked the Capitals 2-0 to complete a home-and-home sweep. Jussi Jokinen (YOO'-see-YOH'-kih-nehn) opened the scoring late in the first period before Sidney Crosby netted the insurance goal with 5:48 remaining. Crosby leads the NHL with 88 points after helping the Penguins earn their eighth straight win over the Caps.
The victory gives Pittsburgh a three-point edge over Boston in the East.
Elsewhere on ice:
— Carolina beat the Rangers for the first time in 11 tries as Jordan Staal and Jiri Tlusty both had a goal and an assist to lead a 3-1 victory over New York. The Blueshirts fell to 8-4-1 in their last 13 games and remain one point ahead of third-place Philadelphia in the Metropolitan Division.
—The Flyers were 2-1 losers against visiting New Jersey, with Jaromir Jagr (YAH'-roh-meer YAH'-gur) netting the game-winner with 12:18 left. Taravis Zajac (ZAY'-jak) also scored and Martin Brodeur (broh-DOOR') made 30 saves as the Devils won for the fifth time in seven games to pull within two points of the Flyers.
— Taylor Hall scored in the fourth round of the shootout to lift Edmonton over Minnesota 4-3. Zach Parise, Jared Spurgeon, and Jason Pominville scored in 4-minute, 16-second span of the first period to put the Wild up 3-0, but the Oilers eventually tied it on third-perido goals by David Perron (peh-RAHN') and Jordan Eberle (EB'-ur-lee).
— Rookie Boone Jenner and veteran Brandon Dubinsky scored 40 seconds apart in the third period to give Columbus a 3-1 lead in its fifth victory in six games, 4-1 over Detroit. Sergei Bobrovsky (boh-BRAHF'-skee) stopped 40 shots against the Red Wings, who've won just one of their last five games.
— Nashville posted a 4-1 victory in Buffalo behind Shea Weber's one goal and one assist. Nick Spaling, Craig Smith and Paul Gaustad also scored to back Carter Hutton's 24 saves.
— Radim Vrbata (vur-BAH'-tah) had a goal and two assists as Phoenix dumped Florida 3-1. Mike Smith stopped 31 shots and blanked the Panthers until midway through the third period.
NHL-AVALANCHE-PARENTEAU
Avs Parenteau is sidelined
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — Colorado coach Patrick Roy (WAH) says P.A. Parenteau (payr-ehn-TOH') will miss at least four weeks with a right knee injury. The right winger suffered a sprained MCL during Monday's win over Winnipeg. Parenteau has 14 goals and 19 assists this season.
MLB-BRAVES-MEDLEN
Medlen has elbow problems again
KISSIMMEE, Fla. (AP) — Braves pitcher Kris Medlen has injured a ligament in his right elbow for the second time in less than four years, but the team says it is too early to determine the extent of the damage.
Braves general manager Frank Wren says Medlen had an MRI on Monday that revealed the injury. Wren added that the 28-year-old right-hander and the team will seek a second medical opinion.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL-NCAA BERTHS
Dance cards punched
UNDATED (AP) — Gonzaga, Mount St. Mary's, Milwaukee and North Dakota State are the latest teams to earn automatic berths in the NCAA men's basketball tournament.
Gonzaga claimed its 13th West Coast Conference title as San Dower Jr. delivered 20 points and 13 rebounds in a 75-64 win against BYU. Gary Bell Jr. had 14 points and David Stockton dished out seven assists to send the Bulldogs to the NCAA tournament for the 16th straight year.
Rashad Whack scored 20 points and Julian Norfleet had 17 as Mount St. Mary's earned an 88-71 victory against Robert Morris in the Northeast Conference title game. The fourth-seeded Mountaineers built a 20-point first-half lead, shot 60 percent from the field and earned their first conference title.
Senior forward Kyle Kelm had 20 points and nine rebounds as Milwaukee posted a 69-63 victory over Wright State for the Horizon League tournament title. Jordan Aaron scored 18 points as Milwaukee went 9 of 18 from beyond the arc against the league's top defense and had a 35-28 edge in rebounds.
Taylor Braun capped his 15-point night by converting a three-point play with 12 seconds left as North Dakota State downed Indiana-Purdue-Fort Wayne 60-57 for the Summit League championship. TrayVonn Wright had a team-high 19 points in the Bison's 25th win.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL-COACHES AXED
Orr out at Bowling Green...UNC Wilmington cans Peterson
UNDATED (AP) — A few schools are suddenly in the market for new basketball coaches.
Bowling Green has fired men's basketball coach Louis Orr after going 101-121 over seven seasons, including a 12-20 mark this season.
UNC Wilmington has fired basketball coach Buzz Peterson and promoted assistant Eddie Biedenbach to interim head coach. Peterson went 42-82 in four seasons with the Seahawks and never finished above .500.
Tennessee State has fired men's basketball coach Travis Williams after only two seasons and a 23-40 record. The team went 5-25 this year after going 18-15 in Williams' first season at the school.
NASCAR-QUALIFYING CHANGES
NASCAR tinkers with new qualifying format
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — NASCAR is already making alterations to the new knockout qualifying format unveiled this year.
Three races into the Sprint Cup season, NASCAR has decided to ban cool-down laps during qualifying and will start allowing teams to hook up cooling units to their engines on pit road. Drivers the last two weeks were slowing their cars to a crawl and circling the track at slow speeds at the same time other drivers were speeding past during their qualifying attempts.
Brian Vickers called it "the most dangerous thing I've ever done in racing" following last week's qualifying session at Las Vegas.
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
