Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Latest Sports Buzz

Latest Sports Buzz

Ex-NBA Player Hoiberg Takes Over At Iowa State

Posted: 28 Apr 2010 09:51 PM PDT

AHN Sports Staff

Ames, IA, United States (AHN) – Former NBA baller Fred Hoiberg was tapped to be the next head coach of Iowa State men’s basketball team, the school announced Wednesday.

Hoibeg, who had a stellar college career with the Cyclones, returned at Iowa State to coach its men’s basketball program.

Hoiberg , known in his career as a streaky three-point shooter, played with three teams — Indiana Pacers, Chicago Bulls, and Minnesota Timberwolves — over 10 seasons in the NBA.

After successfully undergoing a crucial heart surgery in 2005, Hoiberg retired from playing and joined the Wolves coaching staff and later front office in 2006.

In September of 2009, Hoiberg was promoted as the Wolves Vice President of Basketball Operations.

Known as “the Mayor,” Hoiberg tries to lead Iowa State back to its winning ways after missing the NCAA tournament for the fifth consecutive years.

Some detractors believe Hoirberg’s inexperience with coaching and talent scouting at the collegiate ranks could be a high risk for the Cylones.

Nevertheless, Hoiberg’s legendary image in Ames could certainly bring the basketball craze back at Iowa State and Hilton Coliseum.

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Inter Milan Battles Past Barcelona, Advances To Champions League Final

Posted: 28 Apr 2010 09:51 PM PDT

a.lawn1986@googlemail.com – AHN Sports Correspondent

Barcelona, Spain (AHN) – Despite having established a 3-1 lead from the first-leg Inter Milan’s Champions League final place was far from certain ahead of their semifinal second leg showdown against Barcelona in the Catalan’s Camp Nou home,

Barcelona’s formidable home record and a side that is overflowing with creative and technical genius made that true.

In Lionel Messi, Barcelona also have one of, if not the, greatest players in the world.

For 28 minutes Inter stifled the expected early Barcelona onslaught, though midfielder Tiago Motta was then dismissed for pushing a hand into the face of Sergio Busquets.

Down to 10 men, Inter stopped attacking and camped on the edge of the penalty area with defenders throwing their bodies before anything which sought to breach that line.

The red card sparked furious scenes on the touchline as players and officials alike clashed over the controversial decision.

Inter’s approach frustrated the attacking flair of the Spanish giants, whose midfield and forwards craved space and time on the ball.

With time running out Barcelona began to look short on ideas and resorted to sticking central defender Gerard Pique up top as a makeshift striker.

The move smacked of desperation, but moments later looked inspired.

Pique’s deft footwork saw him evade two challenges, leaving defenders and ‘keeper alike sprawled in his wake before smashing home a goal that gave Barcelona seven minutes of hope.

Inter, aided by a harsh handball call on Yaya Toure in the build-up of a move that culminated in Bojan thinking he had got the crucial second, held on to clinch its place in the final.

Inter manager Jose Mourinho, who used to work as a translator at Barcelona, raced onto the pitch to salute the travelling fans sparking more furious and controversial scenes.

Despite losing 1-0 on the night, Inter Milan and Jose Mourinho will face Bayern Munich in the Champions League final and not Barcelona courtesy of the 3-2 aggregate win.

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`World`s Worst Tennis Player` Dee Loses Libel Suit

Posted: 28 Apr 2010 09:51 PM PDT

Jojo Doria – AHN Sports Contributor

London, England, United Kingdom (AHN) – Tennis player Robert Dee, who filed a libel suit against a newspaper which labeled him the “world’s worst” professional player, has lost his case after the High Court threw out his defamation claim Wednesday.

Dee, 23, who is based in La Manga, Spain, sued the Daily Telegraph over its April 2008 story, which according to him was “offensive” and it could ruin his “potential” career as a tennis coach in the future.

The newspaper for its part contended that the story, which pointed out Dee’s 54 defeats in a row, when read together with another item in the same edition was arguably not defamatory.

Two stories, including a front-page piece, which were carried by the Telegraph stated:

“A Briton ranked as the worst professional tennis player in the world after 54 defeats in a row has won his first match. Robert Dee, 21, of Bexley, Kent, did not win a single match during his first three years on the circuit, touring at an estimated cost of 200,000 pounds. But his dismal run ended at the Reus tournament near Barcelona as he beat an unranked 17-year-old, Arzhang Derakshani, 6-4, 6-3. Dee lost in the second round.”

On Wednesday, Mrs. Justice Sharp rejected Dee’s argument and concluded that the claim would not likely “restore or enhance” his “reputation in any event”.

She added that the claimant’s 54 setbacks in a row during his first three years on the world ranking ITF/ATP tournaments were incontestable “true facts”.

She further stated that the newspaper had “no additional obligation” to prove that Dee “is objectively the worst professional tennis player in the world”.

Dee has sued a number of media outlets who covered the story.

He has won settlements and apologies from a large number of them, including a 12,500 pounds settlement from the BBC.

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China Stripped Of 2000 Olympic Bronze: Participant Underage

Posted: 28 Apr 2010 09:51 PM PDT

Kareem Shaker – AHN Sports Reporter

United States (AHN) – The International Olympic Committee stripped China of a bronze medal from the 2000 Olympic Games Wednesday after it was revealed one of the athletes was not of age.

Gymnast Doug Fangaxio already had all her results from the games cancelled in February by the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG).

The IOC revealed that Fangaxio was only 14 at the time of the Games, not 16 like required by the IOC.

Fangxaio had placed sixth in the women’s individual floor exercises and seventh in the women’s individual vault, but was disqualified from those and every other event she participated.

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Lakers, Kobe Lead Way In Jersey, Merchandise Sales

Posted: 28 Apr 2010 09:51 PM PDT

Jojo Doria – AHN Sports Contributor

New York, NY, United States (AHN) – Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant’s No.24 jersey is the most popular jersey in the NBA for the second straight year, the league announced Wednesday.

Since the start of the 2008-09 season, the four-time NBA Champion and 12-time NBA All-Star has topped the jersey sales.

Coming in at No. 2 is Cleveland Cavaliers’ LeBron James.

Rounding out the top 5 are Boston Celtics’ Kevin Garnett, who climbed one spot from last year to No. 3, Chicago Bulls sophomore Derrick Rose, and Orlando Magic’s Dwight Howard, this year’s NBA Defensive Player of the Year.

Listed at No. 6 is Miami Heat’s star Dwayne Wade followed by Chris Paul of the New Orleans Hornets at No. 7 and Celtics star Paul Pierce at No. 8.

Oklahoma City Thunder’s top scorer Kevin Durant barged into the top 10 for the first time, landing at No. 9.

Carmelo Anthony of the Denver Nuggets vaulted from No. 15 to the No. 10 spot.

The list is based on sales at the NBA Store in New York City and on NBAStore.com since the start of the 2009-10 campaign through April 2010.

The Lakers are also the top sellers in the league.

The defending NBA champions have led the list of popular team merchandise for the seventh time in eight years.

The Celtics are second followed by the Cavs, Bulls and Knicks.

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Broncos Tackle Clady Injures Tendon, Could Miss Three Months

Posted: 28 Apr 2010 09:51 PM PDT

Jojo Doria – AHN Sports Contributor

Denver, CO, United States (AHN) – Denver Broncos’ Ryan Clady’s availability for Week 1 is in doubt after it was reported that the All-Pro left tackle underwent surgery Tuesday to repair a partially torn patellar tendon. The injury was sustained in a non-football-related activity.

According to the Denver Post Wednesday, the 6-foot-6, 325 pound Clad injured his knee while playing basketball over the weekend.

In the Post report, it was indicated that the tendon was 50 percent torn, which is expected to sideline the former Boise State standout for three months.

He is likely to miss the entire season, but could be cleared to play in the regular season opener in Jacksonville on Sept. 12.

The injury to Clady, who became the 11th tackle to earn Pro Bowl honors in his second season last year, will impact the blind side of Kyle Orton and the front side of Tim Tebow.

Selected 12th overall in the 2008 NFL Draft, Clady permitted the fewest sacks by any tackle in the league in his rookie year.

Meanwhile, starting right tackle Ryan Harris, who presumably is the Broncos’ top backup at left tackle, is still trying to bounce back from a toe surgery.

In the recent NFL draft, Denver selected Utah left tackle Zane Beadles in the second round. Beadles could be placed at guard or right tackle.

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Magic`s Howard Docked $35,000 For Blog Comments Criticizing Refs

Posted: 28 Apr 2010 09:51 PM PDT

Kareem Shaker – AHN Sports Reporter

Orlando, FL, United States (AHN) – The NBA fined foul-mired Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard $35,000 Wednesday for comments made on DwightHoward.com about referees’ officiating in the Magic’s first-round series against the Charlotte Bobcats.

Howard was limited to an average of 26 minutes per game and managed just 9.8 points and 9.3 rebounds per game in the Magic’s four-game sweep of Charlotte.

Charlotte used three big men to foul Howard, and frustrated the center into committing several foolish fouls himself.

“Ya’ll know that that series against Charlotte drove me crazy. I mean, it was almost comical at times how I was getting fouls called on me. There was nothing I could do out there and I felt like I couldn’t move without getting that whistle blown on me,” Howard said on the blog.

“I gotta say this is the most frustrating stretch of my career. I’ve never been through four games in a row like that. But hey, we won the series and we’re moving on.”

The fine is the second levied against the star big man for comments made on the blog. The NBA docked Howard $15,000 last November.

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MLB.com Writers Told To Tweet Only About Baseball

Posted: 28 Apr 2010 09:51 PM PDT

Jojo Doria – AHN Sports Contributor

New York, NY, United States (AHN) – Major League Baseball has reportedly ordered mlb.com beat writers to stop tweeting about non-baseball topics.

According to the reports, all other topics are strictly forbidden.

Apart from the belief that the move will prevent non-baseball tweets from showing up on the MLB.com Twitter feed/ aggregator, many perceive it as a reaction to the dismissal of Mike Bacsik from his radio job.

Bacsik, a former major leaguer, was booted out of job at a radio station as a result of what some observers saw as a racially-motivated tweet.

It is widely viewed that setting standards for the type of content writers post on Twitter is reasonable.

But the crackdown on all non-baseball talk from MLB.com writers, whose accounts on their daily beat have built rapport with followers, could take away a connection with fans.

Twitter guidelines were also sent to players to be mindful with their 140-character messages.

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Mickelson Skips Pro-Am Due To Illness; First Round Status In Doubt

Posted: 28 Apr 2010 09:51 PM PDT

Jojo Doria – AHN Sports Contributor

Charlotte, NC, United States (AHN) – Phil Mickelson, who was set to play for the first time since capturing his third Masters title, withdrew from the pro-am Wednesday at the Quail Hollow Championship just five holes into the round due to illness.

The current world No. 2 had been ill in his hotel room Tuesday night.

A report by NYPost.com indicated that Mickelson, who was replaced on the sixth hole of his afternoon pro-am group, was dealing with what he described as food poisoning.

After being brought to the on-course medical center and treated for dehydration, Mickelson reportedly indicated that he fully expects to compete Thursday.

This is not the first time Mickelson has been treated for dehydration at a tournament.

At the 2009 World Golf Championships-CA, he was treated with IV on Saturday and went out the tournament.

Since his absence was due to illness, Mickelson’s status in the event after skipping the pro-am will not be affected.

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Russian Newcomer Leads Middleweight Parade At Bellator 16

Posted: 28 Apr 2010 04:21 PM PDT

Shawn Krest – AHN Sports Correspondent

Kansas City, MO, United States (AHN) – Russian Alexander Shlemenko makes his Bellator debut Thursday night in Kansas City, three days after joining the promotion.

Bellator announced Shlemenko’s signing Monday, in the nick of time for the Middleweight quarterfinals, scheduled for Bellator 16 in Kansas City. The Lightweight, Welterweight, and Featherweight quarters are already completed.

At 27-4, Shlemenko has nine more wins than any other Middleweight in the field. In his last fight, Shlemenko floored former UFC fighter Sean Salmon twice with knees to the body, ending the bout with the second one at :40 of the first round.

The knee to the body led Shlemenko to victory in his only other U.S. fight, a ShoXC TKO of Robert McDaniel in 2008.

Shlemenko may be one of the favorites in the Middleweight bracket, but he didn’t draw the best first-round match-up. He will be facing Matt Major on Thursday night.

Major is only 6-1, but his specialty is American Jiu Jitsu. Shlemenko has struggled with Jiu Jitsu specialists in the past, losing three bouts in a row, all to BJJ practitioners in 2005 and 2006.

Major has fought a high level of competition in his handful of pro bouts. He won unanimous decisions over former UFC fighter Shonie Carter and ShoXC fighter Jaime Fletcher in his last three bouts. His only career loss came to UFC and Ultimate Fighter veteran Jesse Taylor.

Major first came to prominence when he was “discovered” at American Kickboxing Academy by the crew from the Tapout Versus reality series in their first season. Major is the second Tapout veteran to compete in Bellator season two, joining lightweight Pat Curran.

If Shlemenko isn’t the Middleweight favorite, then Bryan Baker is. Baker was 2-1 in the WEC, losing his only career bout to Chael Sonnen. He fought in a non tournament Bellator bout last June, beating Matt Horwich, formerly of the UFC, in a unanimous decision. He also owns a knockout over Rory Singer.

Baker will face Sean Loeffler. Loeffler has seven knockouts and ten submissions in his 18 career wins, and only two of his 22 career bouts have gone the distance. Other than a victory over former Ultimate Fighter contestant Christian Fulgium, Loeffler has not faced many well-known opponents.

Jared Hess looks to take the final step, after finishing runner up in Bellator’s first Middleweight tournament last year. Hess beat Daniel Tabera by rear naked choke in the first round, then knocked out Yosmany Cabezas in the third round to earn a trip to the Middleweight final against Hector Lombard.

The Lombard-Hess bout was a bloodbath, with doctors refusing to allow Hess to continue due to a cut over his right eye. Hess would like nothing better than to win this year’s tournament to earn a rematch with Middleweight champion Lombard.

Standing in Hess’s way is IFL veteran Ryan McGivern, who is a former Iowa Hawkeye wrestler and works as an engineer for the U.S. Army. McGivern trains at Miletich Fighting Systems and has a 13-6 career record.

Season Seven Ultimate Fighter contestant Luke Zachrich fights in the final Middleweight quarterfinal. Zachrich trains under UFC Hall of Famer Dan Severn and has a 10-1 career record. He has not lost since appearing on the Ultimate Fighter.

Zachrich will be facing fellow submission specialist Eric Schambari. The 11-1 Schambari fought three times in the WEC, losing to fellow Bellator Middleweight Bryan Baker.

Four non-tournament bouts round out the card. In the first, Eric Marriott makes his second appearance in a month for Bellator. Marriot lost to Joe Warren in the first round of the Featherweight bracket.

He takes the spot of Tyler Stinson, who won a Kansas City tryout but was then promoted to the tournament as an injury replacement. Marriott faces Demi Deeds.

In another non-tournament fight, Drew Dober (1-2) takes on Nick Nolte (2-1), who last fought on a November Strikeforce Challengers card, where he choked out Andy Waters in the first round.

Brian Davidson also fought on that Strikeforce card, scoring a 29 second knockout of Russell Patrick. He faces Danny Tims in the third non-tourney fight.

In the final matchup, Brent Weedman fights Rudy Beers. Weedman lost to Gray Maynard and Dan Hornbuckle early in his career but is riding a five-bout win streak.

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