Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Latest Sports Buzz

Latest Sports Buzz

NCAA Considering Fines, Punishment For Agents, Players

Posted: 26 Oct 2010 04:43 PM PDT

Kareem Shaker – AHN Sports Reporter

Chapel Hill, NC, United States (AHN) – The NCAA met last week with the NFL and other officials in a panel to address the issue of improper agent activity in college sports. The panel, which consists of 22 officials across a wide range of roles, is planning another meeting next month.

The meetings are likely in reaction to a spatter of well-publicized violations in colleges from North Carolina to USC. Just last month Sport Illustrated published an agent confession by former agent Josh Luchs.

Luchs garnered a boatload of attention for naming more than 30 former college players that accepted money from him while they were in school.

“Tackling the complex issue of improper agent activity in college sports requires commitment from several groups,” said the NCAA in a statement.

“Key representatives from the NCAA staff, its member schools, Collegiate Commissioners Association, NFL, NFL Players Association, American Football Coaches Association, state government and the agent community met again last week and continue to make progress in identifying potential solutions.”

Participants include Ray Anderson, NFL, Executive Vice President of Football Operations; James Guidry, NFL Players Association,Collegiate Affairs Manager; David Price, NCAA, Vice President of Enforcement; Rick Smith, agent, Priority Sports & Entertainment; Grant Teaff, American Football Coaches Association, Executive Director; among many others.

The committee may move to implement a conduct system similar to the one the NFL Players Association uses to certify agents and fine them for improper activity.

“The group has identified opportunities for greater collaboration, including enforcement efforts, potential post-NCAA financial penalties, best practices for the effective enforcement of state agent laws, educational efforts, as well as an examination of the frequency and timing of agent contact with student-athletes.”

 

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Borque, Halak, Stamkos Named NHL`s `Three Stars` For Week

Posted: 26 Oct 2010 04:43 PM PDT

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AHN Sports Staff

NY, NY, United States (AHN) – Calgary Flames left wing Rene Bourque, St. Louis Blues goaltender Jaroslav Halak and Tampa Bay Lightning center Steven Stamkos have been named the NHL ‘Three Stars’ for the week ending Oct. 24.

FIRST STAR — RENE BOURQUE, LW, CALGARY FLAMES

Bourque scored a League-leading six goals, including three game-winners, and added an assist in four games for the Flames, who posted a 3-1-0 record and climbed to first place in the Northwest Division. Returning from a two-game absence due to injury, Bourque tallied the only goal of the game in a 1-0 overtime victory at Nashville Oct. 19.

He notched the third hat trick of his NHL career and added an assist in a 6-2 victory at Nashville Oct. 22 and concluded the week with two more goals, including his third game-winner of the week, in a 4-0 victory over the San Jose Sharks Oct. 24.

The 28-year-old native of Lac La Biche, Alberta, who scored a career high 27 goals with the Flames in 2009-10, leads his club in scoring this season (6-1–7) and is tied for the League lead in game-winning goals with Chicago Blackhawks forward Patrick Sharp (three).

SECOND STAR — JAROSLAV HALAK, G, ST. LOUIS BLUES

Halak posted a 2-0-1 record with a 1.62 goals-against average, .944 save percentage and one shutout, helping the Blues improve to 4-1-2 on the season.

Halak helped the Blues take three of four points from a home-and-home series with the Chicago Blackhawks, recording 30 saves in a 3-2 overtime loss at Chicago Oct. 18 and stopping 23 shots in a 4-2 victory at St. Louis Oct. 22.

The 25-year-old Bratislava, Slovakia native posted the 10th shutout of his NHL career and first as a St. Louis Blue with 31 saves in a 1-0 overtime win over the Pittsburgh Penguins Oct. 23. Acquired from Montreal in an off-season trade, Halak is 4-0-0 with a 0.99 goals-against average and .960 save percentage at Scottrade Center this season, helping the Blues extended their overall home winning streak to 10 games.

THIRD STAR — STEVEN STAMKOS, C, TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING

Stamkos continued his torrid start to the season by recording a League-leading nine points (four goals, five assists), taking a four-point lead in the NHL scoring race with 8-7–15 in eight games.

Stamkos notched three points (one goal, two assists) in a 5-4 victory over the Dallas Stars Oct. 18, ending the Stars’ perfect 4-0-0 start to the season, and had an assist in a 3-2 overtime loss to the New York Islanders Oct. 21.

He tallied the second hat trick of his NHL career, including the game-winning goal, and added an assist in a 5-2 victory over the Atlanta Thrashers Oct. 22 and concluded the week with an assist in a 4-3 loss to the Nashville Predators Oct. 24.

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China Cup Regatta Heads For Bigger, Better Race

Posted: 26 Oct 2010 04:43 PM PDT

AHN Sports Staff

Shenzhen, China (AHN) – Seventy-eight international sailing teams are set to arrive in the beautiful coastal city of Shenzhen this week to prepare for one of the biggest sailing events in Asia – the 2010 China Cup Regatta.

Entering its fourth year, the China Cup Regatta has already established a name in the sailing world, drawing numerous sailing teams and enthusiasts for four days of elite level regatta races and cultural festivities (October 31-November 2).

In fact, China Cup organizers recorded a bigger competing field this year, as the number increased from 49 sailing teams in 2009 to 78.

The 2010 China Cup features teams from the United Kingdom, United States, Australia, France, England, Israel, New Zealand, and Asian countries like Singapore, Thailand, Japan, and the host nation.

The Sheraton team from South Africa will also try to extend its reign after posting a perfect score last year to secure the China Cup title.

This year’s China Cup Regatta will also have its first all-women sailing team from Hong Kong.

The DEA Sailing Association, a nonprofit yachting organization in Hong Kong, will field a team composed of all females using a 30-foot keel boat named DEA II

“This is our first time having all women on the team,” DEA II helmsman Bonnie Cheng told the Wall Street Journal Sunday.

Aside from the races, the China Cup will also present the Whisper Music Festival, in which several international artists will perform.

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Report: Yanks` A-Rod Drowned His Sorrows With Heat Pal LeBron

Posted: 26 Oct 2010 04:43 PM PDT

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AHN Sports Staff

Miami, FL, United States (AHN) – The day after the New York Yankees were eliminated from the playoffs, Alex Rodriguez partied at a Miami nightclub with someone who is no stranger to playoff failure, ex-Cavs, now Miiami Heat superstar LeBron James.

The two kicked it at the grand opening of the Arkadia at the Fontainebleau Hotel on Saturday night to attend Drake’s 24th birthday party.

Spies inside the club told TMZ both A-Rod and LeBron partied until 1 am — and were each seen drinking Grey Goose La Poire vodka.

Tune in to TMZ on TV weekdays Monday through Friday (check http://www.tmz.com/tmztv/ for syndicated/local listings)

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Giants Defense Knocks Cowboys Quarterback Romo Out Of Tilt

Posted: 26 Oct 2010 04:43 PM PDT

AHN Sports Staff

Irving, TX, United States (AHN) – The already struggling Dallas Cowboys suffered another setback Monday night as quarterback Tony Romo suffered a broken collarbone when he was driven to the turf by a New York Giants defender.

Linebacker Michael Boley, who came on a blitz, delivered the clean though hard blow.

Romo was replaced by Jon Kitna, 38, who has not played for nearly two seasons.

The ‘Boys also trailed the G-Men 24-20 at intermission, despite New York committing three turnovers.

Giants quarterback Eli Manning made up for a pair of picks and a poor start with three scoring strikes.

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Brassard Power-Play Goal Difference As Blue Jackets Edge Flyers

Posted: 26 Oct 2010 04:43 PM PDT

Kareem Shaker – AHN Sports Reporter

Columbus, OH, United States (AHN) – Kyle Wilson scored in the first period and a Derick Brassard power-play goal in the second lifted the Columbus Blue Jackets over the Philadelphia Flyers 2-1 Monday night.

Villa Leino scored for the Flyers, assisted by Danny Briere and Scott Hartnell, to cut the lead to one with five minutes left.

But the Blue Jackets relied on Mathieu Garon, who held back a furious late Flyers onslaught to finish with 28 saves.

Brian Boucher stopped 23 shots for the Flyers (3-4-1, 7 pts), who host to the Sabres Tuesday night.

Columbus (5-3-0, 10) stays home awaiting the Edmonton Oilers Thursday.

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Farewell To Farrell; Francona Says Jays Skipper Will Excel

Posted: 26 Oct 2010 04:43 PM PDT

Jojo Doria – AHN Sports Contributor

Boston, MA, United States (AHN) – John Farrell, the Red Sox’s pitching coach for the past four seasons, was named manager of the Toronto Blue Jays Monday.

It will mark the second consecutive offseason that Boston Red Sox manager Terry Francona will lose a trusted confidant and a close friend.

Last winter, the Red Sox bid farewell to Brad Mills, who was named manager of the Houston Astros.

The Red Sox did not just lose a great pitching coach and one of the most respected men in baseball in Farrell, 48, but their AL East-rival Jays just got better with Farrell on board.

Though Farrell has no experience as a manager; he boasts a diverse background of baseball experience.

Farrell was a former Major League pitcher. He played for the Indians, Angels and Tigers from 1987-96, registering a record of 36-46 with 4.56 ERA in 116 contests, including 109 starts.

He joined Francona’s staff as the Red Sox pitching coach position prior to the 2007 campaign after serving as the director of player development for the Indians for five years following his retirement as an active player.

“It’s a loss for us but we’re happy for John [Farrell] and Sue and their opportunity,” Francona told the Boston.com. “John’s a star and he deserves this. We’ve been saying since the day we hired him that we were going to lose him. Being excited for him outweighs our loss.”

“I think we hire good people,” Francona added. “You want to do that. Sure, it would be great if everybody stayed around. But when you hire good people, they get noticed.”

Farrell succeeds Cito Gaston, who retired after the season.

Gaston will remain with the Blue Jays organization as an advisor. He finished his Toronto managerial career with a record of 894-837 over 12 seasons, managing 1,731 games for the Jays.

Gaston guided the Blue Jays to back-to-back World Series titles in 1992 and ’93.

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Loveridge, Knight Bag Table Tennis Tilt

Posted: 26 Oct 2010 04:43 PM PDT

Jojo Doria – AHN Sports Contributor

Douglas, Isle Of Man (AHN) – Guernsey’s Alice Loveridge derailed a complete English sweep by capturing her first senior title, while England’s Darius Knight clinched the men’s singles title at the Six Nations International Championships on the Isle of Man during the weekend.

The 16-year-old Loveridge, who represented Guernsey at the recent Commonwealth Games in Delhi, dominated her English counterpart Emma Vickers in the women’s singles final, 11-4 11-8 9-11 11-6.

She then collaborated with Dawn Morgan to capture the bronze in the women’s team competition.

Guernsey managed to place third in the overall team competition after Garry Dodd and Oily Langlois finished fourth in the men’s team event.

Meanwhile, Knight, a three-time national under-21 champion, bested teammate Chris Doran 11-7 12-10 8-11 11-9 to rule the men’s title match.

England dominated the men’s, women’s and combined team competitions in the six nations championships which were held at the National Sports Centre in Douglas starting Friday.

Teams from England, Scotland, Wales, Guernsey and the Isle of Man participated in the events.

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New Kid On The Block: Daye Earns Starting Spot

Posted: 26 Oct 2010 04:43 PM PDT

Jojo Doria – AHN Sports Contributor

Auburn Hills, MI, United States (AHN) – After losing Jonas Jerebko to a torn Achilles tendon, the Detroit Pistons anointed Austin Daye to start at power forward when the team opens the season against the New Jersey Nets Wednesday night.

The 6-foot-11, 200-pound Daye, who thrives well playing at small forward and spent most of his time during the summer league playing shooting guard, earned the starting lineup spot following an impressive performance in the exhibition period.

The versatile Daye, 22, playing in his second year after the Pistons picked him in the first round of the 2009 NBA Draft, was the leading scorer in the preseason for the Pistons.

He averaged 15.9 points and logged more minutes than any other Pistons this preseason.

In exhibition, he also converted a team-high 17 shots from the 3-point range.

Aside from playing the perimeter, Daye averaged 5.6 rebounds in the preseason, an increase from the 2.5 boards he logged last season.

He’s expected to bolster the Pistons presence around the basket.

The former Gonzaga player, averaged 5.1 points per game last season.

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Kings Take Wild In Shootout; L.A.`s Doughty Placed On Injured Reserve

Posted: 26 Oct 2010 04:43 PM PDT

Jojo Doria – AHN Sports Contributor

St. Paul, MN, United States (AHN) – Michal Handzus found the back of the net in the fifth round of a shootout, lifting the Los Angeles Kings to a 3-2 decision over the Minnesota Wild Monday night at Xcel Energy Center.

Goalie Jonathan Quick prevented Minnesota’s bid to extend the contest by thwarting Antti Miettinen’s backhand shot in the fifth round, sending the Kings to their fifth victory in six games overall.

Anze Kopitar, who also scored in the shootout, scored a goal and an assist, while Jarrett Stoll accounted for the other goal for the Kings, who improved to 2-1 on its current five-game road trip.

Quick finished with 20 saves in the victory.

Prior to the contest, the Kings placed defenseman Drew Doughty on injured reserve with an upper-body injury.

It marked the second time that the Kings were playing without Doughty, who got injured in Wednesday’s 4-3 win against Carolina.

As a result, the Kings recalled defenseman Jake Muzzin Manchester of the AHL Monday.

The Wild, who were looking to take advantage of Doughty’s absence on L.A.’s blue line, got a goal each from John Madden and Nick Schultz.

Minnesota, which was aiming to get back into the win column after having a two-game win streak snapped Friday by the Canucks, has now dropped two in a row.

Niklas Backstrom finished with 32 saves in the loss.

The Kings continue their current road swing Wednesday with a stop at Chicago, while Minnesota will play Washington Thursday.

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