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Wednesday's Sports Wire: OSU quintet back to face tough schedule

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By Associated Press
September 9, 2010

 

Associated Press

 

OSU quintet back to face tough schedule

COLUMBUS — Seeking a seventh consecutive Big Ten title, the Ohio State women’s basketball team opens conference play on Dec. 30 at rival Michigan.

The Buckeyes host games against 2010 NCAA tournament teams East Tennessee State, Virginia and Final Four participant Oklahoma, as well as a neutral-site matchup against two-time defending national champion Connecticut in the Maggie Dixon Classic in New York City.

Coach Jim Foster’s team opens on the road Nov. 12 at Temple. Two days later, Ohio State begins its home schedule against Eastern Michigan.

The Buckeyes return all five starters from last season, including three-time Big Ten player of the year Jantel Lavender and point guard Samantha Prahalis, like Lavender a first-team All-Big Ten player a year ago.

 

Saban: Ingram likely won’t play Saturday

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram is unlikely to play for No. 1 Alabama against No. 18 Penn State on Saturday.

Ingram had left knee surgery last week, but Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban said Wednesday the junior running back was able to run the day before.

Saban said Ingram’s knee was “improving every day,” but he probably won’t play against the Nittany Lions (1-0). Ingram wasn’t at practice Wednesday during the media viewing session.

“We’ll continue to progress him day-to-day,” Saban said. “He hasn’t had any swelling or problems. If he can continue to progress — I would say he’s probably not going to be ready to play this week. He might be ready by the game, but he won’t be able to practice enough.

“After that, maybe we have a chance to get him back if he continues to progress.”

Ingram sat out Alabama’s opener against San Jose State after having an arthroscopic procedure to repair an injury sustained in practice early on opening week.

Morneau optimistic he’ll return soon

MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota Twins first baseman Justin Morneau says he’s still optimistic that he will play again this season even though he’s been out of the lineup for two months because of a concussion.

Morneau spoke to the media on Wednesday before the Twins took on the Kansas City Royals. He says he is having more good days than bad days recently, which has him hopeful he will return to help his team in the pennant race.

Morneau was injured while sliding into second base against Toronto on July 7. He has not played in a game since.

The Twins entered the series finale against the Royals 41/2 games up on the Chicago White Sox in the AL Central.

Hornets sign point guard Shakur

NEW ORLEANS — The New Orleans Hornets have signed free-agent point guard Mustafa Shakur.

General manager Dell Demps says the 6-foot-4 Shakur has good size for a point guard and got the Hornets’ attention by thriving in the NBA Development League last season.

Undrafted out of Arizona, the 26-year-old Shakur was been with several NBA teams since 2007 but has yet to play in a regular-season game.

Shakur played two seasons in Europe. Last season, he played for the Tulsa 66ers, averaging 19.2 points, 6.9 assists, 4.5 rebounds, 37.8 minutes.

Former NBA player

guilty of fraud

DES MOINES, Iowa — Rumeal Robinson, who led Michigan to the NCAA championship in 1989, has been found guilty on 11 federal financial fraud charges.

A jury returned its verdict against Robinson on Wednesday, finding him guilty of bank bribery, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit bank fraud and making a false statement to a financial institution.

The U.S. attorney’s office says Robinson schemed between 2004 and 2005 to borrow more than $700,000 from Community State Bank in Ankeny with the help a loan officer at the bank. Prosecutors say Robinson claimed to borrow the money for a business but actually bought a condominium, cars, furniture and invested in an energy company.

Crosby homers during Pirates batting practice

PITTSBURGH — If the Pittsburgh Pirates need an answer to their power-hitting problems, maybe they can find it across town in Penguins star Sidney Crosby.

The former NHL MVP homered into PNC Park’s right-field seats while taking batting practice Wednesday with eight Penguins teammates. Crosby, who played youth baseball in Canada until he was 13, was the only one of the group to reach the seats.

Notre Dame’s Wenger has second concussion

SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Notre Dame fifth-year senior center Dan Wenger has suffered his second concussion since mid-August and he is discussing with school officials whether he should return to football.

Wenger, who did not play in last Saturday’s opener against Purdue, got his second concussion on Tuesday, coach Brian Kelly said after Wednesday’s practice.

Kelly said he had a long discussion with Wenger on Wednesday. He said the team’s medical staff, Wenger and his parents are involved in the decision on his future, one that could come in the next couple of days.

Wenger, from Coral Springs, Fla., has appeared in 29 games in his career with 19 starts.

Braxston Cave is the Irish’s starter at center and will be backed up by Mike Golic, Jr.

Gillis takes the long way to the BMW

LEMONT, Ill. — Living off fast food and pocket change as you chase a dream from one small tour stop to another is easy when you’re young and have no responsibilities. At 39, with one small child and another on the way, Tom Gillis wasn’t sure he had it in him again.

Three years after nearly quitting, Gillis is enjoying a resurgence that seems more suited for Hollywood than the PGA Tour. The guy who couldn’t keep his card still has a shot at a $10 million payoff along with Tiger, Phil and the rest of the game’s biggest names. Gillis is at this week’s BMW Championship thanks to a fifth-place finish at the Deutsche Bank Championship, his third top 10 of the season. He has earned $1.07 million this year — more than his career earnings on the PGA Tour coming into the season.

Davidson: Fan ejected because of slur

MILWAUKEE — Veteran umpire Bob Davidson says he ejected a fan at Miller Park because the fan used a homophobic slur aimed at Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina.

Davidson said he decided to throw out 44-year-old Sean A. Ottow of Waukesha, Wis., in the bottom of the seventh inning Tuesday night because he wanted to make sure Molina wouldn’t do something to escalate the situation. Davidson spoke Wednesday before the series finale.

“Molina, I thought he was going to go toward (the fan) and I said, ’I’ll take care of it,”’ said Davidson, who was the plate umpire. “I was going to wait until between innings and not be so obvious, but I figured after he said that, he was very intoxicated, I needed to take care of it.”

Molina has declined to discuss the ejection.

Ottow had said he had been talking to Molina all evening, but the umpires said several Brewers players mentioned how drunk Ottow seemed. When an usher asked Ottow to leave, he stood and posed with his arms in the air to cheers from fans.

Ottow was cited for disorderly conduct by police. In Milwaukee, that typically draws a $185 fine.

“I never swore at him,” Ottow said while handcuffed to a bench on Miller Park’s service level on Tuesday night. “He just got the umpire to throw me out. We were bantering back and forth and I guess Molina couldn’t take it anymore.

“You’d think these guys would have tougher skin than that,” he said.

In the second, Milwaukee manager Ken Macha was thrown out by second base umpire Tim Timmons, Cardinals pitching coach Dave Duncan was ejected from the dugout by Davidson in the third and Milwaukee center fielder Chris Dickerson was tossed by Davidson in the fifth before the fan’s ejection.

 




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