NBA Capsules

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Pau Gasol had 25 points and nine rebounds, and the Los Angeles Lakers overcame Kobe Bryant's absence to beat the New Orleans Hornets 93-91 on Monday night.

National League Capsules

CINCINNATI (AP) - Matt Holliday, David Freese and Yadier Molina homered during the St. Louis Cardinals' big first inning, and Jake Westbrook found his control after a rough start, beating the Cincinnati Reds 7-1 on Monday night.

American League Capsules

BALTIMORE (AP) - The New York Yankees finally won their first game of the season, using four hits by Derek Jeter and an effective pitching performance by Ivan Nova to defeat the Baltimore Orioles 6-2 Monday night.

Tommy Milone shuts down Royals in strong A's debut

OAKLAND (AP) - Tommy Milone experienced a most unusual wait to make his debut with the Oakland Athletics.

Sports News Brief

SWIMMING OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST DIVER MARK LENZI DIES AT 43: BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) - Mark Lenzi struck gold when he switched from wrestling to diving in the mid-1980s. Over the next decade, he became the 1992 Olympic 3-meter springboard champion, earned a bronze medal four years later in Atlanta and became the first driver to score 100 points on a single dive. <p ...

SKI REPORTS

Gemologist unbeaten, stays as No. 2 Derby contender

Zito tosses 4-hitter as San Francisco avoids 0-4 start

69-yr-old woman hit in head by ball at Coors Field

Red Sox ready to celebrate Fenway's 100th birthday

Guillen to return to Florida for Castro apology

Sharks enter playoffs as underdog

Goodell upholds penalties in Saints bounty case

NEW YORK (AP) - Roger Goodell sent a message to every coach and player in the NFL: safety first. The league commissioner stuck with his punishments for New Orleans' pay-for-pain bounties on Monday, rejecting Saints coach Sean Payton's appeal of a season-long suspension. An NFL investigation found that, under Payton's watch, an assistant ran a program offering cash payouts for hits that ...

Blue Jays limiting beer sales at home opener

TORONTO (AP) - The beer taps weren't turned off this time, but fans in the upper deck at Monday night's Toronto Blue Jays home opener found it harder than usual to get their hands on some suds. With a sellout crowd of 50,000 expected at Rogers Centre for the game against Boston, the Blue Jays limited beer sales to one per customer, ...

Sports News Briefs

CYCLING TOM BOONEN WINS PARIS-ROUBAIX FOR 4TH TIME: ROUBAIX, France (AP) - Belgian rider Tom Boonen has won the Paris-Roubaix race for a record-tying fourth time, successfully breaking away from the pack about 35 miles from the end of Sunday's one-day classic. The 2005 world champion crossed the finish line alone, before five chasing riders had reached the velodrome in the northern French town of Roubaix. <p ...

NBA capsules

DENVER (AP) - Kenneth Faried brought the energy and the Denver Nuggets rediscovered their toughness in time to stave off elimination Tuesday night with a 107-100 win over the Golden State Warriors.

NBA committee recommends rejecting Kings move

Here they stay, for now.

NBA veteran center Jason Collins comes out as gay

WASHINGTON (AP) - With the simplest of sentences, NBA veteran Jason Collins set aside years of worry and silence to become the first active player in one of four major U.S. professional sports leagues to come out as gay.

Nuggets down to their final chance

DENVER (AP) - The Denver Nuggets left behind a hole in the wall just inside the visiting locker room at Oracle Arena, courtesy of frustrated forward Kenneth Faried's size 16 sneaker.

Sharks take new identity into playoffs vs. Canucks

SAN JOSE (AP) - The San Jose Sharks have searched for an identity on their journey through this lockout-shortened season.

NBA capsules

ATLANTA (AP) - Josh Smith scored 29 points as the Atlanta Hawks built a 17-point lead at halftime, then withstood an Indiana comeback over the final two quarters to even the series with a 102-91 victory in Game 4 on Monday night.

MLB capsules

EDITOR'S NOTE: Final results for the L.A. Angels at Oakland Athletics was not available at press time. The score was tied 8-8 going into the 19th inning.