02/23/12 06:55 AM UTC AP

Andrew Bynum had a huge smile on his face after he grabbed a rebound of his own miss and got fouled on an attempted putback. Not long after making both those free throws that put the Los Angeles Lakers ahead to stay, Bynum was running after teammate Derek Fisher to give him a big hug following a 3-pointer.

02/23/12 05:55 AM UTC AP

Not much heat from the Hawks for Jeremy Lin and the New York Knicks. That's likely to change Thursday night when the show travels to Miami for Lin versus LeBron and some real Heat.

02/23/12 05:11 AM UTC AP

Outsmarted, outhustled and even outrebounded for most of the game, Michigan State snapped back to stun Minnesota. But in between laments about his team's performance, Spartans coach Tom Izzo offered his due praise. Sometimes, the most important wins aren't pretty at all.

02/23/12 05:08 AM UTC AP

The Boston Celtics can only hope their game against the Oklahoma City Thunder is a microcosm of their season: a dreadful first half and a gutsy second half. Either way, they'd like the final result to be better.

02/23/12 04:05 AM UTC AP

A jury convicted a former University of Virginia lacrosse player Wednesday of second-degree murder of his ex-girlfriend in a drunken, jealous rage, rejecting a first-degree murder verdict and a possible life sentence. Instead, jurors recommended a 25-year prison term for George Huguely V in the May 2010 slaying of Yeardley Love. They added one more year for a grand larceny conviction.

02/23/12 03:09 AM UTC AP

Scoop Jardine scored 15 points to help No. 2 Syracuse overcome a 13-point first-half deficit and beat South Florida 56-48 on Wednesday night. Kris Joseph had 12 points and nine rebounds for the Orange (28-1, 15-1 Big East), who matched school records for most regular-season and conference victories — both set in 2009-10.

02/23/12 02:56 AM UTC AP

The Wake Forest baseball player who received a kidney from his coach has returned to the field a year after the transplant saved him from a disease that could have resulted in kidney failure. Left-fielder Kevin Jordan drove home a run, scored another and struck out three times in the Demon Deacons' 16-15 loss to High Point in Wednesday's home opener. Jordan drove in the run on a fielder's choice and scored on Conor Keniry's single as part of a seven-run first-inning that gave Wake Forest a 7-1 lead.

02/23/12 02:51 AM UTC AP

Former NBA player Javaris Crittenton is back in jail. Out on bond on charges that he killed a woman in an August drive-by shooting in south Atlanta, authorities said he was jailed on Wednesday after being pulled over for speeding and refusing to get out of his Porsche.

02/23/12 01:47 AM UTC AP

Tiger Woods had to play a left-handed shot out of the desert. Retief Goosen holed out from 156 yards and didn't even win the hole. Dustin Johnson twice won a hole after taking a penalty drop. But the strangest sight of all Wednesday at the Match Play Championship didn't come from the golf course.

02/23/12 12:42 AM UTC AP

Covering Jeremy Lin has been easy for Sports Illustrated. The high-scoring Knicks newcomer is on the cover of SI for the second week in a row. He's the first New York-based team athlete to be given such treatment since the magazine started in 1954 — not even Mickey Mantle, Joe Namath or Eli Manning made two straight.

02/23/12 12:23 AM UTC AP

Texas Rangers president and CEO Nolan Ryan says the team assembling for this spring training "is as strong a club as we've ever been. " At a packed news conference Wednesday, the Hall of Fame pitcher spoke of how impressed he is with the team's expensive addition from Japan, right-hander Yu Darvish, then talked of the addiction struggles of outfielder Josh Hamilton and his high expectations for this club.

02/22/12 11:45 PM UTC AP

Temple and the Big East are talking about the Owls rejoining the conference as soon as next season. MAC Commissioner Jon A. Steinbrecher said in a statement Wednesday that his league is "aware that Temple has been in discussions with the Big East regarding membership."

02/22/12 10:51 PM UTC AP

Dale Earnhardt Jr. left Daytona frustrated and furious last July. One of his favorite tracks, the place forever linked to his family name, had become a bore.

02/22/12 10:37 PM UTC AP

Before there will be significant changes to college football's postseason and how to determine a champion, there are plenty of options to be considered. Conference commissioners who run the Bowl Championship Series are just getting started on that process.

02/22/12 08:53 PM UTC AP

British Prime Minister David Cameron asked England's soccer leaders Wednesday to provide a plan against racism in the sport after a series of high-profile cases involving the Premier League. Cameron addressed soccer officials, former players and anti-racism campaigners at a summit on Downing Street, warning that abusive behavior by soccer stars is imitated by youngsters and must be stopped.

02/22/12 08:35 PM UTC AP

The new manager of the Chicago White Sox didn't curse, rant or make any headlines during his first media session of the spring. Robin Ventura was calm and cool — in other words, he was no Ozzie Guillen.

02/22/12 08:22 PM UTC AP

Prosecutors have dropped DUI charges against Pittsburgh Steelers receiver and Dancing With the Stars winner Hines Ward. DeKalb County Prosecutor Sonja N. Brown said Wednesday that Ward pleaded guilty to reckless driving and was given a year on probation. She says he also was fined $2,000 and must do 80 hours of community service. He also must undergo alcohol evaluation.

02/22/12 07:54 PM UTC AP

Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker Harry Carson is taking a pass at running for Congress in New Jersey. The 58-year-old retired New York Giant told The Associated Press on Wednesday that he just doesn't have the drive he thinks is needed to do it.

02/22/12 07:16 PM UTC AP

The defamation lawsuit filed by two former ball boys against Syracuse University and head basketball coach Jim Boeheim will be heard in Syracuse, a judge ruled Wednesday. Bobby Davis and Michael Lang filed their suit in New York City, claiming Boeheim slandered them by saying they were out for money after their allegations of abuse by former assistant coach Bernie Fine surfaced in November. They fought a motion by the school and Boeheim to hear the case in Syracuse, where they don't believe they'll get a fair hearing because of Boeheim's high standing in the community.

02/22/12 07:29 PM UTC AP

The University of Connecticut says men's basketball coach Jim Calhoun will undergo surgery on Monday to address a condition affecting his lower back. UConn says Calhoun will miss the Huskies' next two games, against Syracuse and Providence, and his coaching status will then be evaluated on a day-to-day basis.

02/22/12 06:54 PM UTC AP

Police escorted bloodied passengers up to ambulances, cordoned off the street near a stricken London subway station and rushed off to find an half-exploded knapsack. But it was all just an Olympic security drill.

02/22/12 06:33 PM UTC AP

U.S. Open champion Samantha Stosur defeated Lucie Safarova of the Czech Republic 6-1, 6-7 (5), 6-1 Wednesday to advance to the third round of the Dubai Tennis Championships. Defending champion Caroline Wozniacki topped Romania's Simona Halep 6-2, 6-3. Wozniacki will face Ana Ivanovic, who defeated Maria Kirilenko of Russia, 6-2, 7-6 (4).

02/22/12 02:49 PM UTC AP

Forget any talk of Kansas State as a team teetering on the NCAA Tournament bubble. After yet another convincing win over a Top 20 team, the Wildcats' bubble has burst — and coach Frank Martin couldn't be happier. Rodney McGruder scored 24 points as Kansas State upset No. 3 Missouri 78-68 Tuesday night, the Wildcats' second win this season over the Tigers and their first at Mizzou Arena since 2007. It's also the second straight win over a Big 12 bruiser and national power, following a one-point weekend win over No. 13 Baylor in Waco, Texas.

02/22/12 02:03 PM UTC AP

Tom Martinez, the longtime personal coach to New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, has died at 67. His wife, Olivia, told the San Mateo Daily Journal ( http://bit.ly/wZC5Vl) that he died Tuesday after suffering a heart attack while receiving dialysis treatment. The San Francisco Chronicle reported he died in Redwood City.

02/22/12 11:57 AM UTC AP

The hottest team versus the hottest story. Linsanity is on its way to Miami, and the Heat can finally say they're eager for the arrival.

02/22/12 06:10 AM UTC AP

When the Memphis Grizzlies lost Zach Randolph to a torn ligament on Jan. 1, the question then was whether they could remain a playoff-caliber team in his absence. If the first half of the season is any indication, it looks as if Memphis plans on being in the thick of the playoff race when Randolph returns.

02/22/12 06:08 AM UTC AP

Dwyane Wade had 30 points and 10 assists, Mario Chalmers and Chris Bosh each scored 20 points and the NBA-leading Miami Heat stretched their winning streak to seven games with a 120-108 win over the Sacramento Kings on Tuesday night. LeBron James scored 18 points, Norris Cole had 12 and Udonis Haslem added 10 for Miami (26-7), which has won each of its games during this streak by at least 12 points. Wade shot 11 for 16, the 11th straight game he's shot at least 50 percent, matching his career best in that department. He also had a run of 11 such games in his rookie season.

02/22/12 04:41 AM UTC AP

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist scored 18 points, Anthony Davis added 13 points and 11 rebounds and No. 1 Kentucky rallied to beat Mississippi State 73-64 Tuesday night. The Wildcats (27-1, 13-0 Southeastern Conference) trailed 41-28 at halftime — which was their biggest deficit of the season — but slowly climbed back to take their first lead at 63-62 with 4:11 remaining on a layup by Kidd-Gilchrist. They never trailed again, winning their 19th straight game.

02/22/12 04:30 AM UTC AP

Brady Quinn is apologizing to Tim Tebow for unflattering comments Quinn made about the Denver Broncos' starting quarterback in a GQ article. The article on Tebowmania was written by Michael Silver and titled "The year of Magical Stinking: An Oral History of Tebow Time."

02/22/12 03:59 AM UTC AP

It wasn't a tough choice for convicted bank robber Chiquinho: spend the day in a cell or make money out in the sun helping Brazil build a 2014 World Cup stadium. Former slave worker Nivaldo Inacio da Silva had another easy decision to make: pick cotton for about $2 a day or make eight times as much as a bricklayer at another World Cup venue.

02/22/12 03:42 AM UTC AP

Corey Crawford made 31 saves to lead the Chicago Blackhawks to a 2-1 victory over the Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday night in a matchup of Central Division rivals missing their top centers. Jimmy Hayes scored the tying goal in the second period and set up Marcus Kruger's winning score in the third as Chicago earned its fourth consecutive victory since a nine-game losing streak.

02/22/12 03:14 AM UTC AP

Kendall Marshall had a career-high 22 points and 13 assists to help No. 7 North Carolina beat North Carolina State 86-74 on Tuesday night. Harrison Barnes added 20 points for the Tar Heels (24-4, 11-2 Atlantic Coast Conference), who extended their domination of their nearby rivals. North Carolina has won 12 straight meetings and hasn't lost to the Wolfpack (18-10, 7-6) in five years.

02/22/12 02:20 AM UTC AP

Jordan Theodore scored a career-high 29 points to lead Seton Hall to the signature win it needed for its NCAA tournament resume, a 73-55 victory over No. 9 Georgetown on Tuesday night. The Pirates (19-9, 8-8 Big East) put on quite a shooting performance against one of the conference's best defensive teams. They shot 61.0 percent (25 for 41), the best against the Hoyas this season and only the third time any team shot 50 percent or better. Georgetown (20-6, 10-5) came in allowing 38.4 percent shooting this season.

02/22/12 12:34 AM UTC AP

The Fiesta Bowl's former top executive pleaded guilty Tuesday to a felony charge stemming from a political donations scandal that nearly jeopardized the bowl's role as a regular host of college football's national championship game. John Junker entered the plea in Phoenix for his role in soliciting political contributions from Fiesta Bowl employees, a development that will likely help federal and state investigations into the scheme.

02/22/12 12:27 AM UTC AP

Carmelo Anthony briefly had what now belongs to Jeremy Lin. Madison Square Garden shook when he was announced. Fans lined up to buy his jerseys, chanted his name, delighted in having the New York native back in the city.

02/21/12 09:59 PM UTC AP

Theo Epstein's worth to the Boston Red Sox was easy to gauge. A quick glance at the two World Series trophies at Fenway Park settles that. Determining his value to the Chicago Cubs, another title-starved franchise desperately hoping to be saved by the Boy Wonder, turned out to be a much more complicated issue. Turns out the architect of a two-time champion who restored pride to a franchise that had long been known for choking in the biggest moments was worth a 26-year-old reliever and a player to be named later.

02/21/12 09:42 PM UTC AP

Maybe this should be the Joe Maddon Rule. A season after the Tampa Bay manager put outfielder Sam Fuld to the mound to warm up for the sole purpose of giving a reliever extra time in the bullpen, Major League Baseball closed the loophole.

02/21/12 09:18 PM UTC AP

Former race car driver Jeremy Mayfield says the new criminal charges against him are "baseless" and suggests he's the target of a conspiracy involving NASCAR and law enforcement officials. Indictments by a North Carolina grand jury released Monday charged Mayfield with three counts of possessing property stolen from businesses, and a fourth charge of obtaining property by false pretense.

02/21/12 08:26 PM UTC AP

If Michael Waltrip were to count up all the concussions he has sustained over a NASCAR career that stretches back nearly 30 years, he'd certainly hit 10 — and probably keep going. Safety measures since Dale Earnhardt's death in 2001 have gone a long way toward preventing head injuries, and NASCAR officials have taken steps to improve the way they identify and treat concussions. But Waltrip knows that won't undo all those hits he took in the 1980s and `90s.

02/21/12 05:53 PM UTC AP

London Olympic organizers say an 80-mile (130 kilometer) dress rehearsal for the torch relay will go through both rural and urban locations in central England. The practice announced Tuesday will take place April 20 and be run from Leicester to Peterborough.