■FOOTBALL
Murder suspect enters plea
A judge entered a not guilty plea on Friday for a man charged with the murder of former Denver Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams. Willie Clark, 25, faces 39 counts — including two of first-degree murder — in the death of Williams, who was killed in a drive-by shooting on Jan. 1, 2007. Denver District Judge Christina Habas entered the plea on Clark’s behalf after rejecting a request for a two-month delay from defense attorneys. Williams was shot in the neck as he left a Denver nightclub in a limousine. The killing came hours after the popular cornerback played in the 26-23 overtime loss to San Francisco that ended the Broncos’ NFL season.
■BASKETBALL
Garnett to miss three games
Boston Celtics forward Kevin Garnett will miss the last three games of the team’s West Coast road trip after straining his right knee against Utah on Thursday. The reigning NBA champion Celtics said Garnett returned to Boston on Friday for an MRI exam. Garnett, the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, will miss games at Phoenix, Denver and the Los Angeles Clippers. The Celtics then return home to face Indiana on Friday. Garnett was hurt late in the first half of Thursday’s 90-85 loss to Utah, landing awkwardly while going up for a rebound.
■BASKETBALL
Jazz owner Miller dies
Utah Jazz owner Larry Miller died on Friday at the age of 64 from complications of type two diabetes, the NBA team said. The Jazz said Miller died at his home, surrounded by family members. Miller had endured severe health problems recently and last month had both of his legs amputated below the knee. Miller, who owned the Jazz for the last 23 years, first purchased 50 percent of the franchise in 1985, then bought the remaining half one year later. A prominent businessman, Miller owned 39 auto dealerships and several movie theaters, among many other business ventures.
■NORDIC SKIING
US win two golds
Todd Lodwick won the opening Nordic combined event at the world championships in Liberec, Czech Republic, to give the US two golds in one day. Lodwick defended his slim lead from the cross-country portion by completing jumps of 100.5m and 97.5m in difficult conditions in the ski jump, which was postponed from Thursday. Lodwick finished with 276 points, while Tino Edelmann of Germany was second with 273.7 points. Earlier on Friday, Lindsey Van became the first ever women’s ski jumping world champ. The US had not won a gold at a Nordic skiing worlds since 2003.
■LUGE
Germans sweep top spots
Natalie Geisenberger set a course record on the track that will host the Olympics in a year and her German teammates swept the rest of the top spots in a World Cup race at Whistler, Canada, on Friday. Tatjana Huefner wrapped up the overall Cup title by taking second, 0.357 seconds behind Geisenberger’s 1:38.012. Andre Florschutz and Torsten Wustlich continued the German medal trend by capturing gold in the men’s doubles race with teammates Alexander Resch and Patric Leitner finishing second. Austrian brothers Andreas and Wolfgang Linger placed third and were the only non-Germans to reach the podium. Germany came roaring back after its streak of 99 straight wins in World Cups, Olympics and World Championships was interrupted two weeks ago by American Erin Hamlin’s title at worlds in Lake Placid, New York.
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