NBA-SCHEDULE
Two division leaders in action tonight
UNDATED (AP) β The Southwest Division-leading Memphis Grizzlies are home this evening to Denver’s Nuggets. The Grizzlies have won 4 straight and 8 of 10. They top the division by a game and-a-half with a record of 33-12.
Central leader Chicago continues its West Coast road trip with a game in L.A. against the Lakers. Chicago is first in the Central by 3 games over Cleveland and has a record of 30-17. The Lakers, who learned yesterday that Kobe Bryant will indeed miss the rest of the season after undergoing shoulder surgery, have lost their last 9 games.
The remaining games this evening feature the Bucks in Orlando against the Magic, who have lost 6 straight, and the Knicks in Indianapolis for a date with the Pacers.
T25-SCHEDULE
Wildcats looking for 20th win
UNDATED (AP) β The No. 1 team in men’s basketball is back on the court tonight as coach John Calipari takes his Kentucky Wildcats to Columbia, Missouri, for a game with the Missouri Tigers. The Wildcats have won their first 19 games of the season to secure the top ranking. Only 19-0 Virginia remains unbeaten among major college men’s teams.
Third-ranked Gonzaga (gahn-ZAG’-uh), which is 20-1, is home this evening to Portland, while in other games involving a ranked school No. 11 Utah is at UCLA and 16th-ranked Maryland is playing at Ohio State.
NHL-SCHEDULE
Atlantic showdown
UNDATED (AP) β The top two clubs in the NHL’s Atlantic Division are facing off tonight as Tampa Bay entertains Detroit. The Red Wings start the game with a one point leave over the Lightning.
The top two teams in the Pacific Division are also squaring off tonight, but the spread between the two clubs is much bigger. As a matter of fact, first-place Anaheim has a 14 point lead over San Jose. The visiting Ducks have won their last 6 games.
The Bruins are back on the ice for the first time in 8 days. Tonight Boston is on the road for a game with the Islanders, who lead the Metropolitan Division and share first place in the Eastern Conference with Tampa with 65 points.
The red-hot Rangers, who have won 16 of their last 20 games, are home to Montreal. The Canadiens, however, seem to have the New Yorkers’ number as they are 8-3-0 in their last 11 games with the Rangers.
The rest of the schedule has the Jets in Philadelphia, the Maple Leafs home to the Coyotes, Dallas at Ottawa, the Panthers at home to Columbus, Nashville in St. Louis, the Wild at Calgary and the Sabres playing in Edmonton, where they haven’t lost since 2003.
AUSTRALIAN OPEN
Second men’s semi is coming up
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) β The final men’s semifinal match is on tap tonight, U.S. time, at the Australian Open. The winner of the Novak Djokovic (NOH’-vak JOH’-kuh-vich) and Stan Wawrinka (vah-VRINK’-ah) pairing will move on to the championship match and a date with sixth-seed Andy Murray. Top-seed Djokovic has dominated his series of matches with defending champion Wawrinka, having won 16 of the 19 matches they’ve played.
Murray earned his spot in the final with a semifinal win over No. 7 Tomas Berdych (TOH’-mahs bur-DEEK’) 6-7, 6-0, 6-3, 7-5. This will be his fourth trip to the Australian final after three losses.
PGA-PHOENIX OPEN
Woods set for debut
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) β This week’s stop on the PGA Tour is the Phoenix Open and much of the attention being paid to the event is the return of Tiger Woods. This will be his first tournament of the year and first visit to this event since 2001. He played only nine times worldwide last year because of back surgery and other lingering issues.
The winner of the Phoenix Open a year ago was Kevin Stadler while the winner last week of the Humana Challenge was Bill Haas.
LPGA-COATES CHAMPIONSHIP
Second round play today
OCALA, Fla. (AP) β Three players shared the clubhouse lead after the first round of the LPGA’s season-opening Coates Golf Championship in Florida. Jessica Korda, Stacy Lewis and Azahara Munoz fired 6-under-par 66s yesterday, one shot better than Austin Ernst and Ha Na Jang.
The round was played in cold weather with more of the same expected today.
