Sports News Brief

TENNIS SERENA WILLIAMS ON US FED CUP TEAM; VENUS IS NOT: WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. (AP) - Serena Williams is on the U.S. Fed Cup roster for matches against Ukraine on April 21-22, but her sister Venus is not. "She just played Miami and Charleston, so she's trying to gauge now her recovery, how much she can play," U.S. Fed Cup captain Mary Joe ...

SKI REPORTS

Royals Broxton wild as A's rally for win in 12

Blues will start Halak in goal vs Sharks

Stanford's football coordinators work to replace starters

NCAA puts Baylor basketball on 3 years' probation for calls

WACO, Texas (AP) - The NCAA put Baylor on three years of probation Wednesday after an investigation turned up hundreds of impermissible telephone calls and text messages sent to prep recruits by coaches and assistants on the basketball teams. The violations were considered to be major infractions, and they were announced less than a week after the Lady Bears won the national ...

NBA Capsules

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Chris Paul scored 31 points, including the game-winning shot on a layup with 8.8 seconds left, lifting the Los Angeles Clippers to a 100-98 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday night that kept them in position for home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs.

Duffy leads Royals past Athletics

OAKLAND (AP) - Danny Duffy pitched six sharp innings and the Kansas City Royals beat the Oakland Athletics 3-0 in a rain-shortened game on Tuesday night.

Mavs gets much-needed win over Kings

DALLAS (AP) - The Dallas Mavericks finally won a game without Lamar Odom, who is no longer an option for them.

NBA Capsules

MIAMI (AP) - Paul Pierce scored 27 points, Kevin Garnett added 24 points and nine rebounds, and the Boston Celtics made their first eight shots of the fourth quarter to hold off the Miami Heat 115-107 on Tuesday night.

Fox, MLB file objections to Dodgers sale

Cespedes making quick impression in big leagues

OAKLAND (AP) - With one monster 462-foot home run, Yoenis Cespedes showed off a power stroke reminiscent of Oakland's Bash Brothers back in the day. That swing spoke volumes to those who questioned whether the prized Cuban defector could dominate in the major leagues for the Athletics as he did in his Caribbean homeland. Cespedes shrugs off his ...

Sharks learn from losses to Blues

Reds 2B Phillips gets $72.5 million through 2017

Sports News Brief

CYCLING 5 OF TOP 15 PRO TEAMS COMMIT TO TOUR OF UTAH RACE: SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - Five of the world's top 15 international cycling teams have committed to the 2012 Tour of Utah. Utah's event is set for Aug. 7-12 and is the first major weeklong stage race following the Tour de France and London Olympics. <p ...

NBA capsules

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - James Harden scored 31 points and sank seven 3-pointers while fighting through flu-like symptoms, and the Houston Rockets beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 107-100 Wednesday night to pull within 3-2 in their first-round playoff series.

Nuggets, Warriors ready for physical Game 6

OAKLAND (AP) - Kicks in the ankles. Forearms to the throat. Elbows at the head. Illegal screens. Hard shoves. Bloody lips. Puffy eyes. Body bruises. Some even done by "hit men." Denver Nuggets coach George Karl thought the reaction to his team's Game 5 win over the Warriors sounded like a "different movie than I'm watching." Golden State's Mark Jackson defended his accusations of dirty play Wednesday, and players on both sides practically ...

Guerrero likes chances of giving Mayweather loss

LAS VEGAS (AP) - Floyd Mayweather Jr. admitted this week what many have long suspected - that he hand picks every opponent who enters the ring with him. He also decides how much they get paid and what the contract details will be. So Robert Guerrero was somewhat prepared when Mayweather picked him to be the opponent for his first fight in a year Saturday night at the MGM Grand hotel. What ...

Damian Lillard is NBA Rookie of the Year

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - It's unanimous: Damian Lillard is the NBA's Rookie of the Year. No, it never was in question. Lillard, the sixth overall pick in last June's draft out of Weber State, led all rookies with a 19-point scoring average. He also averaged 6.1 assists and 3.1 rebounds, playing in all 82 games this season. He broke Stephen Curry's rookie record for 3-pointers in a season, finishing with 185, ...

Earthquakes' Lenhart suspended 2 games by MLS

NEW YORK (AP) - San Jose forward Steven Lenhart was suspended two games and fined an undisclosed sum by the MLS disciplinary committee on Wednesday for his violent play in last weekend's game against Chivas USA. Lenhart was penalized for cleating Chivas' Mario de Luna in the face and nearly stepping on it after the defender had slid to to knock the ball away from him in the 68th minute of the teams' ...

Warriors upset with dirty play in loss to Nuggets

DENVER (AP) - Mark Jackson is standing up for his smooth-shooting guard who's constantly getting knocked down.

Pokulok’s OT goal sends Thunder to Western final

NCHORAGE, Alaska &ndash; Defenseman Nik Pokulok parked a centering pass by Shawn Weller at the left post to lift the Stockton Thunder to another memorable, come-from-behind victory, 4-3 in sudden death overtime over the Alaska Aces in Game 6 to win the Western Conference Semifinal before 4,868 fans at Sullivan Arena on Tuesday.

Cespedes drives in 4 runs, A’s beat Angels

OAKLAND (AP) - Yoenis Cespedes drove in four runs, Seth Smith knocked in three with a bases-loaded double and the Oakland Athletics beat the Los Angeles Angels 10-6 on Tuesday.

Tired tale: A’s beat Angels 10-8 in 19 innings

OAKLAND (AP) - An exhausted Brandon Moss threw a pie in his own face after hitting the home run that ended the major league's longest game this season.

Sandoval’s 2-run HR leads Giants past Diamondbacks

PHOENIX (AP) - A sore elbow couldn't slow Pablo Sandoval.

Hansen has ‘no plans to give up’ fight for Kings

The recommendation has been made, the vote is set and the Sacramento Kings seem all but assured of staying in California's capital city.

NHL capsules

ST. LOUIS (AP) - Alex Steen stole the puck from goalie Jonathan Quick behind the net and scored a short-handed goal to give the St. Louis Blues a 2-1 victory over the defending Stanley Cup champion Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday night.

MLB capsules

ATLANTA (AP) - Tim Hudson was a dual threat in his 200th career win, combining with Anthony Varvaro on a three-hitter while adding a homer and a double to lead the Atlanta Braves to an 8-1 win over the Washington Nationals on Tuesday night.

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.