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■ BASKETBALL

Bynum arrested in Israel

US basketballer Will Bynum was arrested by Israeli police on Saturday after allegedly running over a man as he left the scene of a nightclub brawl, according to police and Bynum's team, Israeli champions Maccabi Tel Aviv. The wounded man, a DJ at the club, was in serious but stable condition, the Haaretz newspaper reported. A group of basketball players -- including Bynum -- was at a Tel Aviv nightclub when they became involved in a fight, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said. A 25-year-old man was arrested by police before dawn on Saturday after he drove away from the scene and ran over a 22-year-old man, seriously injuring him, Rosenfeld said.



■ BASKETBALL

Pippen scores in Finland

NBA great Scottie Pippen scored nine points for Finland league leaders Torpan Pojat who beat Honka 98-85 on Saturday in Vantaa, Finland. After a slow start, Pippen improved in the second half, smoothly grabbing nine rebounds and giving out several unselfish passes. "It was great, I did not know what to anticipate without a game for the last three years," the 42-year-old Pippen said. "My conditioning is not at the top level but I played with a great team and had a lot of fun." After trailing defending champions Honka of Espoo by 16 points with 4:36 left in the second quarter, ToPo rallied to win their 19th-straight game in the Finnish league. Pippen leaves Finland unbeaten on his Nordic Europe mini-tour three years after retiring from the NBA.



■ ICE HOCKEY

Billionaire may buy Leafs

Russian-born billionaire Alex Shnaider, a former Formula One team owner, is looking into a possible purchase deal for the Toronto Maple Leafs and Toronto Raptors, the Toronto Star reported on Saturday. The 39-year-old Canadian, whose estimated net worth is US$1.8 billion, has consulted investment bankers on the value of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (MLSE), including basketball's Raptors, the iconic hockey Maple Leafs and their home arena. A spokesperson for Shnaider told the newspaper he has "initial interest" in the conglomerate, which also owns a Major League Soccer club, two condominium towers and a television network devoted solely to the hockey Leafs. The Star reported that Shnaider and his friend Tie Domi, a former Maple Leafs forward, have spoken with investment bankers together. MLSE is owned by the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan, TD Bank, CTV Globemedia and Larry Tanenbaum, a real estate mogul and was recently valued at US$1.5 billion.



■ ICE HOCKEY

Canada wins fourth under-20

Matt Halischuk scored in overtime for Canada to beat Sweden 3-2 and win a fourth successive world under-20 ice hockey championship on Saturday in Pardubice, Czech Republic. Canada made a perfect start to the final, with Brad Marchand scoring 87 seconds in, then Claude Giroux doubling the lead at 17:02 on a power-play. Sweden, who gave Canada its only loss in the preliminary round, came back in the third period through goals by Jonathan Carlsson and Tomas Larsson's equalizer with 38 seconds left, sending the final into overtime for the first time since 2000. Halischuk came through at 3:36 in overtime. Earlier, Nikita Filatov scored twice to help Russia defeat the US 4-2 and take the bronze medal. Russia led 4-0 on first-period goals by Alexei Cherepanov, Evgeni Kurbatov and Filatov, and Filatov's second 1:30 into the second period.



■ SOCCER

Simoes arrives in Jamaica

New Jamaica coach Rene Simoes arrived for his second stint as the Reggae Boyz's leader on Saturday, saying they could qualify for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa only with a team mentality. "I believe in the potential of Jamaica, but we cannot achieve anything individually," Simoes said. He signed a three-year contract with the Jamaican federation last month. The 55-year-old Brazilian led Jamaica when they qualified for the 1998 World Cup in France, but he resigned in 2000 after six years as technical director and went on to coach several Brazilian clubs. Simoes succeeded Bora Milutinovic, who was fired in November for breach of contract.



■ SOCCER

Vogts casts doubt on future

Berti Vogts has cast doubt on his future as Nigeria coach. The former Germany and Scotland coach reportedly complained that late salary payments for himself and delayed team bonuses for players were part of a wider problem for the African team. "It's not really moving forward, not even in slow steps," Vogts was quoted as saying in an interview with the Augsburger Allgemeinen newspaper. "But either you love Africa or you don't, and I love Africa," Vogts said. "Still I can't tell how much longer I will take the blows." Vogts said he enjoyed working with the Nigerian players, adding that the Super Eagles would be formidable with better organization. "If Nigeria's football was led by the German Soccer Federation, the team would be unbeatable for years," said Vogts, who guided Germany to the 1996 European Championship.



■ BOXING

Malignaggi defends title

American Paul Malignaggi successfully defended his title with a unanimous decision over Herman Ngoudjo in an International Boxing Federation light welterweight fight on Saturday. The 28-year-old Ngoudjo, of Montreal, Canada, suffered just the second loss of his career, falling to 16-2 overall. Ngoudjo is a perfect 15-0 on home soil but is now 1-2 in three career bouts in the US. Making the first defense of his title he won by defeating Lovemore N'dou six months ago, Malignaggi (24-1, 5 KOs) began strong but was cut over his left eye in the fourth round of the fight in Atlantic City. The 27-year-old New Yorker was on the receiving end of some good punches by Ngoudjo in the seventh but outboxed the challenger down the stretch. Ngoudjo battled hard in the 12th and final round, but Malignaggi received scores of 115-113, 117-111 and 116-113 to retain his crown.



■ RUGBY UNION

Dominici calls it a day

Veteran French winger Christophe Dominici on Saturday announced his retirement from the international game after a career which yielded 23 tries from 65 games. "Playing for France is over," said the 35-year-old following his Stade Francais club's 33-6 win over Montpellier in the national Top 14 championship. "It has been a big part of my life but now it's time to turn the page. There are other players and it's a new story beginning for France with the objective of the 2011 World Cup. If I am being honest, I know I will not be at the next World Cup." Dominici made his French debut in February, 1998, in a 24-17 win over England and he won his last cap in the 34-10 defeat to Argentina in the third-place play-off for the 2007 World Cup last October. He played in four Six Nations-winning teams, with two Grand Slams, and also played in the 1999 World Cup final defeat to Australia.
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