Atlanta forward Shelden Williams was carjacked at gunpoint Saturday before the Hawks’ game against Charlotte. Douglasville City Police said two suspects were arrested late Saturday afternoon at Arbor Place Mall in Douglas County, near Atlanta. The suspects were in Williams’ car and were attempting a robbery, according to an officer who answered the phone at the Douglasville Police Department.
Huet to return, Habs send down G Halak
The Montreal Canadiens assigned goalie Jaroslav Halak to the minors Saturday after Cristobal Huet was cleared to return to action. Halak, who was recalled on Dec. 3, made one appearance during his backup stint behind rookie Carey Price while Huet was sidelined by a groin injury. The 22-year-old Slovak allowed one goal on seven shots a week earlier when he replaced Price for the third period of…
Gratton, Ouellet out for Lightning
Center Chris Gratton and right wing Michel Ouellet have joined the Tampa Bay Lightning’s growing list of injured players. The team said Saturday that Gratton will be sidelined two weeks because of a hip injury. Ouellet dislocated his left shoulder Thursday night in a 9-6 loss to Calgary and is expected to miss four to six weeks.
Purdue denies Pitino 500th victory
Purdue’s freshmen grew up just in time to deny Rick Pitino his 500th college coaching win. Robbie Hummel, one of the Boilermakers’ four freshman starters, scored 15 points, and the Boilermakers beat No. 22 Louisville 67-59 on Saturday in the Wooden Tradition. Purdue had lost at Clemson and Missouri, but this time handled a late challenge at Conseco Fieldhouse to get their first victory over a…
Huggins picks up 599th career victory
Joe Alexander scored 20 points and Darris Nichols added 16, leading West Virginia to an 86-62 victory over UMBC on Saturday to give first-year coach Bob Huggins his 598th career win. Huggins will go for No. 599 on Wednesday at Radford. Only five other active Division I coaches have more wins. Da’Sean Butler added 14 points and nine rebounds for West Virginia (8-1), which leads the nation in scoring…
Alford defeats mentor Knight 80-63
Steve Alford says it’s never fun to coach against Bob Knight. The last two meetings have been tougher on The General. Freshman Dairese Gary scored 18 points, shooting 7-of-11 from the floor and hitting all four of his 3-point tries, while J.R. Giddens and Chad Toppert each scored 13 points in New Mexico’s 80-63 victory over Texas Tech on Saturday.
Nebraska beats No. 16 Oregon 88-79 in OT
After so much had gone so wrong for No. 16 Oregon, coach Ernie Kent figured his Ducks would win when Tajuan Porter went to the free-throw line for a chance at a rare four-point play in the final seconds of regulation. Porter’s seventh 3-pointer tied it, but he missed his only free throw of the game Saturday, and Nebraska dominated the overtime to beat the Ducks 88-79.
Arizona State routs No. 17 Xavier 77-55
Ty Abbott scored 19 points and freshman-dominated Arizona State routed No. 17 Xavier 77-55 on Saturday. Jerren Shipp scored 17 points, and James Harden added 16 for the Sun Devils. In what is believed to be a first for ASU, the Sun Devils started four freshmen — guards Harden, Abbott, Jamelle McMillan and forward Rihards Kuksiks.
Marquette wins easy in return from break
Wesley Matthews just wanted to play somebody, anybody, after Marquette’s long layoff. Matthews scored 12 points and Lazar Hayward added 12 points and seven rebounds to lead No. 10 Marquette to an 82-51 victory over Sacramento State on Saturday. After playing one game in 14 days and twice since a Nov. 21 loss to Duke in the finals of the Maui Invitational, the Golden Eagles didn’t show any letdown…
Longar, Johnson lift Sooners by Arkansas
Longar Longar and Austin Johnson scored 17 points apiece and combined to lead a late run as Oklahoma pulled away from Arkansas for an 83-72 win on Saturday. Less than a minute after he stiffly limped off the floor after a hard fall, Longar hit two free throws to start a seven-point surge that extended Oklahoma’s lead to 75-65 with 2 1/2 minutes to play.
Kentucky down to 4-4, blows lead vs. UAB
Robert Vaden scored a career-high 33 points including the go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:15 to play as UAB rallied past Kentucky 79-76 on Saturday. Walter Sharpe added 16 points and Reggie Huffman had 10 points and 12 rebounds as the Blazers (8-4) ruined Kentucky’s annual visit to Freedom Hall, home of archrival Louisville.
Pettitte admits briefly using HGH in ’02
Andy Pettitte used human growth hormone to recover from an elbow injury in 2002, the New York Yankees pitcher admitted two days after he was cited in the Mitchell Report. Pettitte said he tried HGH on two occasions, stressing he did it to heal faster and not enhance his performance. He emphasized he never used steroids.