■ICE HOCKEY
Crosby tops All-Star list
Pittsburgh Penguins center Sydney Crosby heads the list of starters announced on Saturday for the NHL All-Star Game with a record vote total in fan balloting. A total of 10 players surpassed the previous all-time record of 1,020,736 votes — set by Jaromir Jagr in 2000 — with Crosby topping out at 1,713,021. Crosby was voted into last year’s All-Star Game as well, but could not play because of an ankle injury. Joining 21-year-old Crosby in the Eastern Conference’s starting lineup will be teammate and NHL scoring leader Evgeni Malkin (1,585,936 votes), and a quartet of Montreal Canadiens who benefited from enthusiastic voters in the host city.
■ICE HOCKEY
Canada to play in junior final
Canada booked a place in the world junior ice hockey championships final for the eighth straight year, edging Russia 6-5 after a shootout on Saturday, having only tied the game with five seconds left in regulation time. Canada’s opponent in today’s final will be Sweden, which progressed with a 5-3 win over Slovakia. It is a re-match of last year’s decider in the Czech Republic when Canada beat Sweden in overtime for its fourth straight title. Canada’s Jordan Eberle, a first-round draft pick of the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers, scored twice in regulation, including the the second with five seconds left when the hosts had pulled goalie Dustin Tokarski off for an extra attacker.
■COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Connecticut beats Buffalo
Donald Brown ran for a career-best 261 yards — including 208 in the first half — and scored a touchdown as Connecticut defeated Buffalo 38-20 in college football’s International Bowl on Saturday. Connecticut overcame five first-half turnovers and a 20-10 deficit to win its second bowl game in three appearances since joining the Big East conference in 2004. Mid-American champion Buffalo had its breakout season under coach Turner Gill end with a loss in its bowl debut.
■BOXING
Nishioka knocks out Garcia
Japanese champion Toshiaki Nishioka pulled off a technical knockout over Genaro Garcia of Mexico to defend the World Boxing Council (WBC) super bantamweight title on Saturday. Nishioka fired an array of left upper cuts before the referee stopped the fight 57 seconds into the 12th and final round. “I really wanted to score a knockout victory because of the many fans who came to watch my fight even though it was the beginning of the new year,” said Nishioka, 32, with his daughter Kohime in his arms. “Probably it was a frustrating fight for the spectators, but I’m really happy that I was able to score a knockout in the end. I’m going to improve my boxing and show them a more exciting fight,” he added.
■BOXING
Moses takes Kobori’s title
Paulus Moses of Namibia wrested the World Boxing Association (WBA) lightweight title from defending champion Yusuke Kobori of Japan by a unanimous decision victory on Saturday. A Thai judge scored it 115-113, a Puerto Rican judge counted it 115-113 and an Australian judge had it 119-109, all in favor of the challenger. “I hit a jab in every round. That’s the key to my victory,” said Moses, who works as a policeman in his country. “I’m really happy to become the first world champion of the new year. I’m proud of it,” said Moses, adding he would continue to work for the police because “I like the job.” It was the first attempt at a world title for the 28-year-old Moses.
RSS