National Sports Headlines from NBC Sports

Michigan's break from Webber, Taylor, Bullock ends

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) - The University of Michigan's 10-year dissociation from Chris Webber, Maurice Taylor and Louis Bullock has ended.Technically.The former Wolverines have to want to reconnect with the school. And, the institution has to welcome them back after they were part of one of the biggest scandals in NCAA history.Michigan athletic director Dave Brandon insisted the door is open."I've n...    

Alex Ferguson statement on retirement

MANCHESTER, England (AP) -Text of statement by Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson announcing his retirement:"The decision to retire is one that I have thought a great deal about and one that I have not taken lightly. It is the right time.It was important to me to leave an organization in the strongest possible shape and I believe I have done so. The quality of this league winning squad, and t...    

Harvey flirts with perfecto in Mets win

Matt Harvey was so dominant, it seemed certain the Chicago White Sox would never score. Instead, each pitch raised more tantalizing questions: Would they ever get a hit, or even a runner?Harvey threw one-hit ball for nine innings in a nearly perfect performance and the New York Mets permitted just one baserunner all game in beating the White Sox 1-0 in the 10th Tuesday night.Harvey allowed only an...    

Manchester United's Ferguson to retire

Alex Ferguson is retiring at the end of the season, bringing a close to a trophy-filled career of more than 26 years at Manchester United that established him as the most successful coach in British football history. "The decision to retire is one that I have thought a great deal about and one that I have not taken lightly," the 71-year-old Scotsman said in a statement on Wednesday. "It is the rig...    

Orb installed as 7-2 favorite for Kentucky Derby

Trainer Doug O'Neill had a pretty darned good day on two courses. First he birdied the eighth hole during a Wednesday afternoon golf outing at Valhalla and then he aced the Kentucky Derby draw when Goldencents landed in the No. 8 post and was made the 5-1 third choice for Saturday's race. "It should be perfect for him," said O'Neill, who saddled last year's winner, I'll Have Another. "Perfect" was...    

BBC sportscaster Hall admits 14 indecent assaults

Veteran BBC sportscaster Stuart Hall pleaded guilty to 14 indecent assaults on underage girls, including one who was just 9 years old, prompting the broadcaster Thursday to drop him for his "sickening" behavior. The 83-year-old, who had been arrested in January for questioning about alleged crimes committed between 1967 and 1986, had earlier denied any wrongdoing. Hall admitted his guilt in court ...    

McIlroy opens with 67 at Wells Fargo

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - For all the talk about the greens, Rory McIlroy's most important club was his driver Thursday in the Wells Fargo Championship.McIlroy kept the ball in play at Quail Hollow and gave himself plenty of birdie chances on a cloudy, soft afternoon. He ran off six birdies in a seven-hole stretch around the turn and finished with an 8-foot birdie putt for a 5-under 67 to share the l...    

Three taken into custody in Boston bomb case

Three additional suspects have been taken into custody in the investigation of last month's deadly bombings at the Boston Marathon, the Boston Police Department and a U.S. law enforcement source said on Wednesday. Officials last month accused two ethnic Chechen brothers of placing homemade pressure-cooker bombs at the finish line of the marathon on April 15. One died after a gunfight with police t...    

Singh out of tournament, day after exonerated

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina (AP) -Vijay Singh has withdrawn from the Wells Fargo Championship, citing a sore back.Singh pulled out of the tournament one day after the U.S. PGA Tour said it would not punish the 50-year-old Fijian for his admission that he used deer antler spray.The tour said the World Anti-Doping Agency informed it that the spray contains only small amounts of a substance that is ban...    

Would MLB, like EPL, be better without playoffs?

Before I tell you about our big idea – “our” meaning Billy Beane and me – let’s start with the inspiration. A week or so ago, my wife Margo asked a sports question. Margo used to be a pretty big sports fan, but that was before the PTA took up 98.9 percent of her time, so now she will emerge every month or two after fighting to the death with another weekly newsletter to ask something like, “So, wh...    

Kentucky Derby field appears set

The field for the 139th Kentucky Derby came into focus with a number of declarations Monday and Tuesday, including a last-minute addition to reach a 20-horse capacity. Trainer Bob Baffert ruled out both Louisiana Derby runner-up Code West and Sunland Derby hero Governor Charlie for the race and conditioner Todd Pletcher nixed the chances of wheeling back Lexington Stakes victor Winning Cause on tw...    

Nuggets 107, Warriors 100

DENVER (AP) - Kenneth Faried put his foot down 48 hours after putting his size-16 sneaker through the wall in the visiting locker room in Oakland, sparking a debate about dirty play.The fiery forward energized the Denver Nuggets, who rediscovered their toughness in time to stave off elimination Tuesday night with a 107-100 win over the Golden State Warriors.The Nuggets never trailed, piled up poin...    

Tour drops its doping case against Vijay Singh

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - Vijay Singh no longer faces any sanction for using deer antler spray.The PGA Tour said Tuesday it was dropping the case against the three-time major champion. Tour commissioner Tim Finchem says new information from the World Anti-Doping Agency indicates that using deer antler spray is no longer considered prohibited.The tour confirmed that the spray Singh used contained IGF-...    

Horschel takes first PGA win at Zurich Classic

AVONDALE, La. (AP) - Billy Horschel sensed the time had come for him to win his first PGA Tour event. This could explain the composure he displayed in the face of two final-round weather delays and a 27-foot putt he had to make on the final hole to avert a playoff.Horschel tied a course record at the TPC Louisiana with an 8-under 64 in the final round of the Zurich Classic on Sunday, which was goo...    

Horschel takes first PGA win at Zurich Classic

AVONDALE, La. (AP) - Billy Horschel shot an 8-under 64 in the final round of the Zurich Classic, maintaining his composure through a pair of weather delays for his first-career PGA Tour victory on Sunday.The 26-year-old former Florida Gator began the day two shots behind third-round leader Lucas Glover and surged into the lead with six straight birdies after the first weather delay. He finished at...    

Horschel takes first PGA win at Zurich Classic

AVONDALE, La. (AP) - Billy Horschel shot an 8-under 64 in the final round of the Zurich Classic, maintaining his composure through a pair of weather delays for his first-career PGA Tour victory on Sunday.The 26-year-old former Florida Gator began the day two shots behind third-round leader Lucas Glover and surged into the lead with six straight birdies after the first weather delay. He finished at...    

Thunder 104, Rockets 101

HOUSTON (AP) - Kevin Durant scored 41 points in his first game without injured All-Star Russell Westbrook, and the Oklahoma City Thunder fought off Houston's late rally to beat the Rockets 104-101 on Saturday night for a 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven playoff series.Durant scored 27 points in the first half, and the Thunder led by 26 points before a big third-quarter rally by the Rockets put them w...    

Lin will play in Game 3 for Rockets

HOUSTON (AP) - Houston Rockets point guard Jeremy Lin will play in Game 3 against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday night.Lin bruised a chest muscle in the first half of a 105-102 loss in Game 2 and didn't play in the second half.Coach Kevin McHale says, "he is up shooting and getting it loosened up, so he's going to give it a shot."The Thunder enter the game up 2-0 in the best-of-seven series...    

Grizzlies 104, Clippers 83

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - Marc Gasol had 24 points and 13 rebounds, and the Memphis Grizzlies beat the Los Angeles Clippers 104-83 Saturday to even their first-round playoff series at 2-all.Zach Randolph finished with 24 points and nine rebounds as the Grizzlies won their second straight to ensure another stop in Memphis for Game 6. Mike Conley had 15 points and 13 assists, and Tayshaun Prince scored ...    

Rangers blank Devils, avoid Pens in first round

Henrik Lundqvist made 20 saves in coasting to his second shutout of the season, and Rick Nash scored twice for the playoff-bound New York Rangers in a 4-0 victory over the New Jersey Devils on Saturday in the regular-season finale for both teams.The Rangers still had to wait to find out who they will face in the first round of the playoffs, but they know it won't be the top-seeded Pittsburgh Pengu...    

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