■ Basketball
Villanueva out
The Milwaukee Bucks will have to press on without power forward Charlie Villanueva who has a torn ligament in his left elbow and will be sidelined at least four weeks. Villanueva, 22, suffered the injury in the second quarter of Milwaukee's 103-101 NBA win over the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday. Villanueva is averaging 14.6 points and 7.4 rebounds in eight games this season.
■ Golf
Clarke to miss PGA
Ryder Cup star Darren Clarke has pulled out of next month's Australian PGA Championship so he can spend more time with his children following the death of his wife. Clarke's wife Heather died of breast cancer in August. The Northern Ireland golfer informed tournament organizers that he is not up to making the trip to Australia. "He's just emotionally exhausted and he needs to spend time at home with his children," tournament spokesman John Dunlop said yesterday.
■ Baseball
Santana nabs AL Cy Young
Johan Santana won the AL Cy Young Award on Thursday for the second time in three years, and the Minnesota Twins' ace was a unanimous choice once again. Santana received all 28 first-place votes for a perfect total of 140 points in balloting by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. Santana separated himself from the competition during a dominant season, going 19-6 with a 2.77 ERA and 245 strikeouts to lead Minnesota to the AL Central title.
■ Rallying
Gronholm ahead in NZ
Finland's Marcus Gronholm won all five stages on the first day of the 17-stage Rally of New Zealand yesterday to close in on his fourth New Zealand title and tighten Ford's grip on the world manufacturers' crown. By the end of the fifth stage, a 3.14km super special at the rally's Mystery Creek headquarters near Hamilton on New Zealand's North Island, Gronholm led Hirvonen by 31.2 seconds. Seven-time world motorcycling champion Valentino Rossi, driving a privately-owned Subaru, spun on the first stage, completing the 20.38km section more than 2 1/2 minutes slower than Gronholm. By the end of the day, Rossi was almost 11 minutes behind.
■ Boxing
Velazquez takes WBC title
Hector Velazquez of Mexico beat Bobby Pacquiao of the Philippines by disqualification in the 11th round on Thursday to capture the WBC super featherweight championship. Velazquez won after suffering a low blow at 2:56 of the 11th round, which prompted the referee to halt the close bout. Pacquiao had one point deducted in the third and fifth rounds for low blows, helping precipitate the referee's decision. Pacquiao, who had a five-inch reach advantage, knocked down Velazquez in the third round with an uppercut to the head. Velazquez now has a record of 46-11-2 with 32 KOs.
■ Soccer
FIFA rejects requests
FIFA, world soccer's governing body, has rejected requests by Turkish club Galatasaray for 10 million euros (US$12.8 million) compensation after French international midfielder Franck Ribery left them, his club Marseille said in a statement on Thursday. In June last year, Galatasaray requested that Ribery should return, denying he had not been paid for three months by the Istanbul club. Galatasaray had signed Ribery in January last year for three and a half years from French first division club Metz but he joined Marseille in June, when he was still just an under-21 international, on a four-year contract.
■ Soccer
Sanchez to coach Mexico
Former Real Madrid striker Hugo Sanchez was appointed Mexico's national team coach on Thursday, selected in a unanimous vote of Mexico's 18 first-division clubs. Sanchez was chosen after Argentine Americo Gallego withdrew his name from consideration late on Wednesday, said Decio de Maria, secretary-general of Mexico's soccer federation. Considered by many the best player in Mexican history, Sanchez lobbied hard for the position.
■ Cricket
Clarke vows to regain place
Michael Clarke has vowed to fight his way back into the Australian team after being left out of the squad for the first Ashes Test against England next week. The 25-year-old said he was not surprised at being omitted after the selectors opted for all rounder Shane Watson as a counter to England's Andrew Flintoff. "The type of person I am I expected not to be picked, so it wasn't too much of a surprise -- a couple of sleepless nights waiting to find out," he told reporters yesterday. Clarke, regarded as Australia's brightest new hope since scoring a century on his Test debut against India two years ago, said he had spoken to the chairman of selectors Andrew Hilditch about what he needed to do to play Test cricket.
■ Rugby
Dates set for 2011 Cup
The 2011 World Cup in New Zealand will take place in September and October, the New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU) said yesterday. The exact dates of the tournament have not yet been decided. "We are committed to staging the best Rugby World Cup possible. The confirmation of the tournament timing is ideal for us in terms of weather considerations and the opportunities to showcase New Zealand at that time of the year," New Zealand 2011 Ltd chairman Jock Hobbs said in a statement. France will stage the sixth Rugby World Cup next year, with the hosts playing Argentina in the first match on Sept. 7 in Paris.
Matvei Michkov did not score on Monday, but the Philadelphia rookie had a hand in both goals as hosts the Flyers earned a 2-1 victory over the Nashville Predators. Ryan Poehling and Jamie Drysdale got the goals for the Flyers (31-36-9, 71 points), who won their third straight. Michkov and Travis Konecny assisted on both. Ivan Fedotov stopped 28 shots to earn his first win since March 1, ending a personal six-game losing streak. Zachary L’Heureux got the lone goal for Nashville. Michael McCarron and Brady Skjei got the assists for the Predators (27-39-8, 62 points), who have just four goals in their
Arminia Bielefeld on Tuesday pulled off a major upset in the DFB-Pokal by defeating defending champions Bayer 04 Leverkusen 2-1 in their semi-final. The third-division team came from behind after Jonathan Tah gave the visitors a 17th-minute lead. Marius Worl replied three minutes later and Maximilian Groser scored Bielefeld’s second goal just before the break. The home team looked more likely to add to that tally as the Leverkusen players looked jaded. “I’m just proud of this team,” Bielefeld coach Mitch Kniat said as most of the fans the small stadium sang around him. “No one will sleep in the city tonight.” Patrik Schick went
THREES KINGS: The Celtics claimed a piece of league history by setting a new record for the number of threes in a season, ending their game with 1,370 Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun on Friday combined for 65 points as the Houston Rockets halted Oklahoma City’s 11-game winning streak with a statement 125-111 victory. In a potential Western Conference finals preview, the Rockets produced a dominant all-round performance to jolt the top-seeded Thunder’s all-conquering preparations for the post-season. Green finished with 34 points from 11-of-24 shooting, while Turkish big man Sengun made 31 points as second-placed Houston improved to 51-27. Oklahoma City grabbed the lead in the opening minutes of the first quarter, but Houston soon knocked the Thunder out of their stride with a physical approach to move into the
Marcus Rashford’s first goals for Aston Villa on Sunday inspired a 3-0 win against Preston North End that sent his side into the FA Cup semi-finals for the first time in 10 years. Rashford struck twice in the second half at Deepdale to end Preston’s stubborn resistance before Jacob Ramsey wrapped up Villa’s long-awaited return to the last four. Villa are to face Crystal Palace — 3-0 winners at Fulham on Saturday — in the semi-finals at Wembley Stadium in London. Revitalized since joining Villa on loan from Manchester United during the January transfer window, Rashford is beginning to show the form that
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