Hartford Courant from Hartford, Connecticut • Page C02

PAGE: C2 Zone: 1S CMY Typeset Sent C2 FRIDAY, DECEMBER14, 2007 THEHARTFORDCOURANT On TheAir NBA 7:30 p.m.: Bucks at Celtics, CSN 8p.m.: Magic at Bobcats, ESPN 8p.m.: Cavaliers at Nets, YES 8:30 p.m.: Knicks at Bulls, MSG 10:30 p.m.: Lakers at Warriors, ESPN HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL 7p.m.: Windsor at Hall, 1290 SOCCER 5p.m.: NCAA Semifinal: Virginia Tech vs. Wake Forest, ESPN2 GOLF 9:30 a.m.: European PGA: South African Airways, Golf (same-day tape) 3p.m.: Target World Challenge, Golf VOLLEYBALL 3p.m.: Semifinal: California vs. Penn State, ESPN2 (tape) FOOTBALL COLLEGE TODAY 8p.m.: Subdivision Final: Appalachian State vs. Delaware, ESPN2 COLLEGE SATURDAY Noon: Division II Final: Northwest Missouri State vs. Valdosta State, ESPN2 4p.m.: Division III Final: Mount Union vs.

Wisconsin-Whitewater, ESPN NFL SATURDAY 8p.m.: Bengals at 49ers, NFL, Radio: 1410 NFL SUNDAY 1p.m.: Jets at Patriots, Ch. Radio: 1350, 770, 1050, 1p.m.: Packers at Rams, Ch. 61 4p.m.: Eagles at Cowboys, Ch. 61 8:15 p.m.: Redskins at Giants, Ch. 30; Radio: 660 NFL MONDAY 8:30 p.m.: Bears at Vikings, ESPN; Radio: 1410 The WeekAhead TODAYSAT.

SUN.MON. TUE.WED. THU. UCONN MEN Quinnipiac 2pm CC UCONN WOMEN South Carolina 7:30 pm GP HARTFORD MEN Villanova 7pm CENTRAL MEN Delaware 1pm CELTICS Bucks 7:30 pm 1pm Pistons 7pm KNICKS 8:30 pm Nets 7:30 pm Pacers 7:30 pm Cavaliers 7:30 pm WOLF PACK Manchester 7pm GP Gampel Pavilion; CC Civic Center; Hartford women off until Dec. 22 vs.

Michigan State at 2 p.m.; Central women off until Dec. 29 vs. Army at 1 p.m. TIGER ONE BEHIND FURYK Tiger Woods went 10 weeks and four days without hitting a shot that mattered but it hardly showed Thursday in the Target World Challenge in Thousand Oaks, Calif. Woods pulled his approach into the hazard on the 18th hole to finish with a double bogey for a 3-under 69, leaving him in a pack of players one shot behind Jim Furyk frustrating the way it ended, no doubt, because it was a good round of Woods said.

Robert Rock shot a2-under 70 to take a one-stroke lead in the South African Open in Paarl. Ernie Els opened with 77, Darren Clarke 72, Retief Goosen 74 and Greg Norman 75. COURSE RECORD FOR STAHLE Louise Stahle shot a course-record 8-under 64 to take a three-stroke lead at the Dubai Ladies Masters in United Arab Emirates. Laura Davies and Lisa Hall opened with 67 and Sophie Gustafson and Lisa Holm Sorensen shot 68. Defending champion Annika Sorenstam who held the record of 65, had 70, while Natalie Gulbis shot 77.

LESLIE WILL RETURN Lisa Leslie will return to the Los Angeles Sparks in May for the start of the 2008 season after sitting out last summer to give birth to a baby girl. Leslie, who gave birth to Lauren Jolie Lockwood on June 25, resumed playing basketball with the U.S. national team in late October. SHORT COURSE RECORDS Otylia Jedrzejczak of Poland and Laszlo Cseh of Hungary set world records at the European Short Course Swimming Championships in Debre- cen, Hungary. time in the 200-meter butterfly was 2:03.53, beating her record of 2:04.94, set Dec.

7, 2006, in Helsinki, Finland. Cseh finished the 200-meter individual medley in 1:52.99. He bet- tered the record of 1:53.14 set by Thiago Pereira of Brazil on Nov. 18 at the World Cup in Berlin. In Villach, Austria, Thomas Morgenstern won his fourth consecutive World Cup ski jumping event, becoming the third jumper to open the season with four straight victories.

Morgenstern joined Aus- Andreas Felder in 1984 and Janne Ahonen in 2004 as the only skiers to sweep for the first four events. The United States will play Germany in the Fed Cup quarterfinals Feb. 2-3 at La Jolla, Calif. Compiled by Robert Campbell from wire reports Starting Lines PRO BASKETBALL NFL SUN SCHEDULE MAY 17: Atlanta, 4 p.m. 18: at New York, 4 p.m.

24: Sacramento, 7 p.m. 27: Indiana, 7 p.m. (ESPN2) 30: New York, 7 p.m. JUNE 1: at Chicago, 4 p.m. 6: Minnesota, 7 p.m.

8: Washington, 3 p.m. 10: at Minnesota, 6 p.m. (ESPN2) 13: at Los Angeles, 7:30 p.m. 16: at Seattle, 7 p.m. 18: at Phoenix, 7p.m.

20: at Sacramento, 7 p.m. 24: Detroit, 7 p.m. 26: at Detroit, 7:30 p.m. 27: Atlanta, 7 p.m. 29: Phoenix, 1 p.m.

JULY 1: Houston, 7 p.m. 5: at Indiana, 7 p.m. 8: at Detroit, 7:30 p.m. 13: at Washington, 3:30 p.m. (Ch.

8) 15: New York, 7 p.m. (ESPN2) 18: at Chicago, 7:30 p.m. 20: Chicago, 1 p.m. 24: Los Angeles, 7 p.m. 27: at Washington, 4p.m.

Olympic break AUG. 28: at Indiana, 7 p.m. 29: at Atlanta, 7:30 p.m. 31: Seattle, 1 p.m. (Ch.8) SEPT.

5: Chicago, 7 p.m. 7: San Antonio, 1 p.m. 9: at Houston, 7:30 p.m. 11: at San Antonio, 7 p.m. 13: Washington, 4 p.m.

Atlanta Hawks rookie forward Al Horford was suspended for one game by the NBA Thursday for a flagrant foul against Toronto guard T.J. Ford. Ford was injured when Horford struck him on the head on a breakaway with 1:32 left in the game Tuesday night. Horford, who was ejected, said he was trying to block shot. Ford, whose head hit the floor hard, was released from an Atlanta hospital Wednesday and plans to take a week off.

Duncan, Parker sit The NBA champion Spurs faced the Lakers in Los Angeles without Tim Duncan and Tony Parker. Duncan, averaging 17.6 points and 8.9 rebounds, sat out his fourth straight game because of a sprained right ankle. Parker, averaging 20.1 points and 6.8 assists, has a sprained left ankle. Video in Tinsley shooting: New video from a security camera shows a silver Chrysler 300 shadowing a Rolls-Royce belonging to Indiana Pacers guard Ja- maal Tinsley shortly before someone fired an assault rifle at him. Indianapolis police say they want to identify a woman who is seen in the video getting out of the Chrysler and walking into a gas station store early Sunday.

Her face passes close to the camera. Tinsley was not hurt. Ratliff to have surgery: Minnesota Timberwolves center Theo Ratliff, who has not played since Nov. 16, will have exploratory arthroscopic surgery on his right knee Tuesday. The operation will be done by Dr.

James Andrews in Birmingham, Ala. Ratliff was acquired from the Celtics in the multi-player trade that sent Kevin Garnett to Boston. New Orleans center Melvin Ely has a fractured left eye socket that will keep him out of the lineup when the Hornets play at Dallas tonight. The Clippers waived forward Ruben Patterson just hours after he helped them beat the Nets in New Jersey for the first time in nearly 10 years. Patterson and Tim Thomas led a 16-5 run in the third quarter of the 91-82 victory Wednesday night.

Patterson was averaging 5.1 points and 3.2 assists. Horford Suspended Associated Press NBA The 2008 schedule was released Thursday and it pleased coach Mike Thibault. The Sun have only three sets of back-to-back games. They open at home against the expansion Atlanta franchise May 17 at Mohegan Sun Arena and are at New York May 18; They play June 26-27 at Detroit and at home against Atlantaand Aug. 28-29 at Indiana and at Atlanta.

Their four-game West Coast swing, which starts June 13 at Los Angeles and ends in Sacramento June 20, has at least one day off between each game, something that happened in the past. probably one of the more balanced schedules had since been here, from both a travel standpoint and a marketing standpoint at Thibault said. are fortunate not to have as many back-to-backs this year. The league made a great effort to balance out days without big gaps in the schedule, and we get to play four of our last six at The Sunfinish the regular season Sept. 13 against Washington.

The league will take a month off in August for the Olympics. The Sun will play its last game of the first part of the season July 27 at Washington and resume the regular season Aug. 28 at Indiana. The playoffs will end in mid-October. The Sun will host Diana Taurasi and the WNBA champion Phoenix Mercury June 29 and Sue Bird and the Seattle Storm Aug.

31 in nationally televised game. The Sun will play the Indiana Fever, who beat Connecticut in the conference semifinal series last fall, May 27 at home in a game televised by ESPN2. Contact Lori Riley at Thibault Happy With Schedule By LORI RILEY COURANT STAFF WRITER FOXBOROUGH, A little snow stop the Patriots from practicing outside Thursday. Actually, it was a lot of snow. Patriots coach Bill Belichick anticipated it, although he might not have expected it to arrive as early and fall as fast.

The players had just finished stretching when the first snowflake fell. As the snow picked up, Belichick about to call an audible. He did not move the team inside the Dana-Farber Field House, the bubble-shaped practice facility, or cut practice short. Belichick said about an hour before the players headed out to practice atGillette Stadium. we get, we get.

Whatever it is, it The Patriots might get more snow Sunday against the Jets as the teams resume their rivalry. The forecast is for a mix of snow and rain with windy conditions. not too familiar with linebacker Junior Seau said. going to be pretty shaky, but not worried about that. The Jets are the team that we have to go out and play.

the biggest The conditions could pose a problem for the defenses. Belichick acknowledged bad weather tends to be more disruptive to defensive players than offensive. reacting to somebody else on a wet or slippery surface, then easier if you know where Belichick said. I think from that standpoint and harder to make a sharp move. Sometimes the pass rushers have trouble on aslick field, being able to really change directions, if the kind of pass rusher you are, trying to move quickly on that type of As an inside linebacker, Seau get many chances to rush the passer.

He has had fewer opportunities to play in the snow, having spent the first 16 years of his career in San Diego and Miami before playing for the Patriots last year. The first time Seau played in the snow, he and Belichick were on opposite sidelines. It was Nov. 15, 1992, in Cleveland. Seau was in his third season with the Chargers and Belichick his second as coach of the Browns.

was something that was new to me at the time. It was fun, it really Seau said. won the only reason why it was fun. But it was definitely a different scene. was never afraid of snow or playing in snow in terms of going out there and playing football.

got to remember, out there for only four quarters. I can handle that. After four quarters, then got Seau anticipate any problems Sundayand believes the snow could be to his advantage. traction is going to be a big Seau said. therefore going to slow a lot of these fast guys down, which is good for me.

Being as old as I am, I can probably catch The Patriots defense probably do any worse than the past two weeks when the Ravens and Steelers rushed for 166 and 181 yards, respectively. think played some good running teams and we played it as well as like to play Belichick said. certainly room for Anything specific? coached well enough, played well Belichick said. That was obvious two weeks ago when the Willis McGahee rushed for 138 yards, the most by an opposing player this season. Willie Parker ran for 124 yards last Sunday.

at the end of the day safety Rodney Harrison said. you run the ball for 1,000 yards and we still win, guess what? They go home losers and we go home The Patriots stopped McGahee when it mattered the most, holding him to four yards on six carries in the fourth quarter. And because the Steelers contain Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, performance was inconsequential. plays that we defended well and others that we and as I said it just goes back to we need to do a better job of coaching and a better job of Belichck said. faced some good runners, so not to take anything away from them, we just need to do a better Tight End Signed The Patriots signed tight end Stephen Spach and placed defensive lineman Mike Wright on the list with a foot injury.

Spach, 6 feet 4 and 250 pounds, was released by the Vikings Sept. 2. He played in 13 games with the Eagles in 2005, his only season in the NFL, and caught seven passes for 42 yards. Contact David Heuschkel at Belichick All Snow Business With Snow Here, He Practices Outside By DAVID HEUSCHKEL COURANT STAFF WRITER JETS AT PATRIOTS, SUNDAY, 1 P.M., CH. 3 BELICHICK Ready for a storm Michael Vick declared am not the bad person or beast been made out to and asked for leniency in a letter to the federal judge who sentenced him to 23 months in prison.

Vick made his handwritten plea from jail as he awaited sentencing by Judge Henry E. Hudson. His five-page letter and several others from Vick supporters, including baseball great Hank Aaron and former heavyweight boxing champion George Foreman, were released by the U.S. District Court in Richmond on Thursday. take full responsibility for my actions and am ashamed that my actions hurt animals and allowed animals to be hurt and Vick wrote.

Honor, I just ask for a second The suspended Falcons appeal enough to overcome finding that Vick lied at times about his role in helping kill pit bulls and about his marijuana use, which was detected by a drug screening. Hudson cited those lapses in giving Vick a longer sentence than two fellow defendants, who were sentenced to 18 and 21 months. Vick said an animal lover but that he grew up in a culture where dogfighting went unpunished while people were arrested for guns or drugs. He also said his actions have left his own once- enviable life in tatters. wish I had never been involved in he wrote.

a result lost everything my good name, job, endorsements, and now my Redman backs Petrino: A day after many of his teammates called the former coach a coward for his abrupt resignation, Falcons quarterback Chris Redman stood by the man who helped him return to the NFL. appreciated everything he Redman said. I agree with the way he left? No, not really, but he left us a note in our locker saying he was doing what was best for him and his family to go ahead and resign. If he feels that way, I wish him the best of Redman went more than 3 1 2 seasons without taking a snap in a regular season game, but his wait ended last month at Carolina. Now he is preparing to start his second straight game for the Falcons, who visit Tampa Bay this weekend.

guard Thomas shut down: Redskins right guard Randy Thomas will not play again this season because of a torn left triceps. Thomas, who played since Week 2, tried to return last week against Chicago, but make it past the first quarter. He was placed on injured reserve Thursday. The NFL will hear the appeal by the union on behalf of suspended Titans cornerback Adam Jones by telephone this afternoon. Cardinals wide receiver Anquan Boldin (hip) participated in part of practice and said he should play Sunday at New Orleans.

Tennessee defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth (hamstring) missed a second day of practice. He did not practice last week, but played in the 23-17 overtime loss to San Diego. Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers (left knee) hobbled through half of practice, increasing the chances play Sunday against Detroit. Billy Volek would start if Rivers Tight end Antonio Gates missed a second straight practice, but coach Norv Turner said Gates would probably play. Vick Apologetic In Letter To Judge Combined Wire Services AROUND THE LEAGUE Todd Collins started an NFL game in 10 years, and before last week, he thrown a pass in a regular season game in nearly three years.

It is part of an unimpressive work history for the quarterback who will start Sunday night for the Redskins, but one that concerns the Giants defense. just have any film look linebacker Antonio Pierce said. was what, 2004, the last time he threw a pass? You have preseason, but not realistic. You just go off what you get on scouting Collins replaced Jason Campbell on Dec. 6in the second quarter of a 24-16 victory over the Bears after Campbell sustained a dislocated kneecap.

Collins, who thrown a pass since Dec. 19, 2004, with the Chiefs, completed 15-of-20 for 224 yards and two touchdowns, earning NFC Player of the Week honors. 21-yard touchdown pass to Todd Yoder was his first since 2002. When asked if it was more difficult to prepare for a quarterback with a limited video archive, defensive end Jason Tuck said, think so, because you really know what to expect. You can look at those 20 passes in that game, and not really Still, the Giants are aware that although Collins been on the field much in 13 years in the league Sunday is his 18th start he is as familiar as anyone with the system of Redskins offensive coordinator Al Saunders.

Collins spent 1998 through 2005 in Kansas City, where Saunders was receivers coach from 1989-98 and offensive coordinator from 2001-2005. Saunders joined Joe staff in Washington in 2006, and Collins essentially followed Saunders there, signing with the Redskins the same season. could tell he knew that system by the way he played in that Pierce said of performance against Chicago. Of course, all systems could be a no-go Sunday with forecasts predicting more snow. At the very least, pounding winds and frigid cold that could take the ball out of both hands.

Michael Strahan called the 8:15 p.m. start in December in the Northeast very Shockey Misses Practice Jeremy Shockey did not practice (abdominal strain) but is expected to play. Safeties Gibril Wilson (knee) and James Butler (hamstring) sat out, as did WR Plaxico Burress (ankle). Craig Dahl (ankle) and CB Aaron Ross (hamstring) were back on a limited basis. Strahan, who missed practice with general soreness, practiced fully.

QB AMystery Man By ERIK BOLAND NEWSDAY REDSKINS AT GIANTS, SUNDAY, 8:15 P.M., CH. 30 STANDINGS EASTERN CONFERENCE Atlantic DivisionWLPct.GB Boston 182.900— Toronto 1310.5656 1 2 New Jersey 913.40910 Philadelphia 913.40910 New York 615.28612 1 2 Southeast DivisionWLPct.GB Orlando 167.696— Washington 1210.5453 1 2 Atlanta 1011.4765 Charlotte 812.4006 1 2 Miami 616.2739 1 2 Central DivisionWLPct.GB Detroit 157.682— Indiana 1111.5004 Cleveland 1012.4555 Milwaukee 912.4295 1 2 Chicago 713.3507 WESTERN CONFERENCE Southwest DivisionWLPct.GB San Antonio 174.810— New Orleans 148.6363 1 2 Dallas 149.6094 Houston 1211.5226 Memphis 615.28611 Northwest DivisionWLPct.GB Denver 148.636— Utah 1310.5651 1 2 Portland 1012.4554 Seattle 617.2618 1 2 Minnesota 317.15010 Pacific DivisionWLPct.GB Phoenix 176.739— L.A. Lakers 128.6003 1 2 Golden State 1210.5454 1 2 L.A. Clippers 813.3818 Sacramento 813.3818 Wednesday Indiana 117, Chicago 102 Toronto 92, Dallas 76 Philadelphia 98, Minnesota 94 Charlotte 108, L.A. Clippers 103 Boston 90, Sacramento 78 Seattle 117, New York 110 Houston 80, Detroit 77 Milwaukee 100, Orlando 86 Denver 105, New Orleans 99 Portland 105, Golden State 95 Phoenix 103, Utah 98 Thursday Washington 104, Miami 91 San Antonio at L.A.

Lakers Today Toronto at Indiana, 7 p.m. Sacramento at Philadelphia, 7 p.m. Milwaukee at Boston, 7:30 p.m. L.A. Clippers at Memphis, 8 p.m.

Atlanta at Detroit, 8 p.m. Orlando at Charlotte, 8 p.m. Seattle at Minnesota, 8 p.m. Cleveland at New Jersey, 8 p.m. New York at Chicago, 8:30 p.m.

New Orleans at Dallas, 8:30 p.m. Utah at Portland, 10 p.m. L.A. Lakers at Golden State, 10:30 p.m. LATE WEDNESDAY SUNS 103, JAZZ 98: Steve Nash played half the game with a chipped front tooth and his five free throws in his final 11 seconds put the game away.

Nash took an inadvertent forearm from Carlos Boozer. The two-time MVP handed the tooth to trainer Aaron Nelson, then conducted a live interview with ESPN before heading to the locker room. Utah dropped its fifth straight, its longest losing streak last April. UTAH FGFTReb MinM-AM-AO-TAPFPts Kirilenko 386-133-30-63317 Boozer 4012-240-04-132424 Millsap 397-146-96-133420 Williams 337-173-51-36318 Brewer 244-64-81-20012 Harpring 152-50-04-5114 Hart 220-51-21-4121 Giricek 81-30-00-1202 Collins 40-10-00-1010 Miles 50-10-00-1000 Price 60-00-00-0010 Totals24039-8917-2717-49181998 FG .438. FT .630.

Three-point goals: 3-7, .429 (Kirilenko 2-2, Williams 1-4, Miles 0-1). Team Rebounds: 11. Team TO: 15 (25 pts). Blocks: 5 (Millsap 2, Boozer, Kirilenko, Williams). TO: 14 (Boozer 4, Millsap 4, Williams 3, Harpring, Kirilenko, Price).

Steals: 12 (Boozer 4, Kirilenko 2, Millsap 2, Brewer, Harpring, Hart, Williams). PHOENIX FGFTReb MinM-AM-AO-TAPFPts Hill 344-143-30-00311 Marion 3812-191-25-151126 Stoudemire 386-186-62-92418 Nash 3610-126-62-611329 Bell 351-80-02-3232 Diaw 223-72-23-6238 Barbosa 252-61-21-2415 Skinner 82-30-00-3014 Totals24040-8719-2115-442219103 FG .460. FT .905. Three-point goals: 4-17, .235 (Nash 3-4, Marion 1-2, Barbosa 0-2, Hill 0-3, Bell 0-6). Team Rebounds: 5.

Team TO: 16 (16 pts). Blocks: 13 (Stoudemire 6, Marion 5, Diaw, Hill). TO: 15 (Nash 6, Hill 3, Bell 2, Diaw, Marion, Skinner, Stoudemire). Steals: 9 (Barbosa 2, Marion 2, Bell, Diaw, Nash, Skinner, Stoudemire). Utah Phoenix 18,422 2:25.

WIZARDS 104, HEAT 91: Washington had lost eight in arow in Miami and 15 of its past 16 overall against the Heat. The Wizards are 12-4 when they score at least 100 points; 0-6 when they do not. DeShawn Stevenson scored 10 consecutive points in a 73- second span of the first quarter to give Washington a24-11 lead. WASHINGTON FGFTReb MinM-AM-AO-TAPFPts Butler 428-213-51-105119 Jamison 447-211-23-163316 Haywood 326-80-05-100412 Stevenson 358-154-40-33126 Daniels 404-72-41-25011 Blatche 133-32-24-4048 Songaila 102-60-00-0024 Mason 203-91-10-3328 McGuire 10-00-00-0000 Totals24041-9013-1814-481917104 FG .456. FT .722.

Three-point goals: 9-22, .409 (Stevenson 6-12, Daniels 1-1, Jamison 1-4, Mason 1-4, Butler 0-1). Team Rebounds: 8. Team TO: 9 (9 pts). Blocks: 4 (Jamison 3, Haywood). TO: 8 (Haywood 3, Mason 2, Butler, Daniels, Jamison).

Steals: 8 (Butler 4, Stevenson 2, Haywood, Songaila). MIAMI FGFTReb MinM-AM-AO-TAPFPts Wright 111-40-00-0212 Haslem 428-153-35-112219 263-61-41-6137 Wade 405-117-100-77117 Williams 140-30-00-1200 Quinn 337-132-20-22222 Davis 336-122-20-22316 Mourning 122-20-01-4244 Cook 100-10-00-0020 Jackson 142-60-00-3214 Totals24034-7315-217-36221991 FG .466. FT .714. Three-point goals: 8-21, .381 (Quinn 6-10, Davis 2-5, Wade 0-1, Williams 0-1, Wright 0-1, Jackson 0-3). Team Rebounds: 7.

Team TO: 14 (13 pts). Blocks: 3 (Mourning, Wade). TO: 14 (Wade 8, 3, Haslem 2, Wright). Washington Miami 19,600 2:20. NBA LEADERS Through Wednesday ScoringGFGFTPtsAvg.

James, Clev. 1717613250829.9 Bryant, LAL 2018214354327.2 Boozer, Utah 222338855425.2 Iverson, Den. 2218616455425.2.