TRANSACTIONS

BASEBALL
American League• BALTIMORE ORIOLES—Optioned LHP Garrett Olson to Norfolk (IL). Assigned LHP Craig Anderson, RHP Ryan Bukvich and RHP Roberto Novoa to their minor league camp.
• DETROIT TIGERS—Optioned RHP Virgil Vasquez and OF Brent Clevlen to Toledo (IL). Assigned RHP Freddy Dolsi, RHP Chris Lambert, RHP Preston Larrison, C Max St. Pierre, C Nick Trzesniak, INF Michael Hollimon and INF Scott Sizemore to their minor league camp.
• OAKLAND ATHLETICS—Optioned RHP Joey Devine to Sacramento (PCL).
National League• PITTSBURGH PIRATES—Optioned RHP John Van Benschoten to Indianapolis (IL).
• WASHINGTON NATIONALS—Assigned OF Alex Escobar and C Humberto Cota to their minor league camp and announced Escobar refused the assignment, making him a free agent.
FOOTBALL
National Football League• BUFFALO BILLS—Re-signed S Bryan Scott.
• PITTSBURGH STEELERS—Agreed to terms with OL Chris Kemoeatu and OL Trai Essex on one-year contracts.
• TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS—Signed DE Marques Douglas.
• TENNESSEE TITANS—Agreed to terms with TE Dwayne Blakley. Canadian Football League• WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS—Agreed to terms with QB Ryan Dinwiddie.
Arena Football League• ARIZONA RATTLERS—Placed K Jason Witczak on injured reserve.
• CLEVELAND GLADIATORS—Released WR Andy McCullough.
• GRAND RAPIDS RAMPAGE—Signed OL Josh Sewell. Waived LB Brenden Givan and FB Alan Krutulis.
• KANSAS CITY BRIGADE—Signed DB Robb Butler. Signed FB/LB Antonio Ficklin from the practice squad. Re-Signed WR/LB Mike Horacek. Placed DB Demario Smalls on injured reserve. Placed QB D. Bryant on recallable waivers.
• ORLANDO PREDATORS—Signed DB Jason Perry from the practice squad. Waived LB Reggie Cooley and DL Chaz Murphy. Signed DB Dion Byrum to practice squad.
• TAMPA BAY STORM—Activated OL Randy Hand from injured reserve. Waived OL Randy Hand.
HOCKEY
National Hockey League• MONTREAL CANADIENS—Signed F James T. Wyman to a two-year contract and assigned him to Hamilton (AHL).
• NEW JERSEY DEVILS—Signed D Tyler Eckford.
American Hockey League• AHL—Suspended Wilkes-Barre/Scranton LW Tim Wallace for two games for his actions in a March 14 game at Bridgeport.
ECHL• ECHL—Suspended Gwinnett D Joe Grimaldi for one game and fined him an undisclosed amount for his in a March 15 game at Columbia. Suspended Phoenix D Brett Angel for three games and fined him an undisclosed amount as a result of his actions in a March 16 against. Suspended Florida LW Kenndal McArdle for five games and fined him an undisclosed amount as a result of his actions in a March 15 game at South Carolina.
COLLEGE• CLEMSON—Agreed to terms with Oliver Purnell, men's basketball coach, on a contract extension through the 2013-14 season.
• IDAHO—Fired George Pfeifer, men's basketball coach.
• NICHOLLS STATE—Announced Mark Cook, women's basketball coach, will not return next season.

BOXING

Fight Schedule

(National TV in parentheses)
Thursday's Matches

At HP Pavilion, San Jose, Calif. (FOXSN), Andre Ward, Oakland, Calif., vs. Rubin Williams, Detroit, 10, super middleweights.
Friday's Matches

At Mohegan Sun Casino, Uncasville, Conn. (ESPN2), Andy Lee, Ireland, vs. Brian Vera, Austin, Texas, 10, super middleweights.
Saturday's Matches

At Morongo Casino Resort, Cabazon, Calif. (HBO), Joel Casamayor, Miramar, Fla., vs. Michael Katsidis, Australia, 12, lightweights; Junior Witter, Britain, vs. Demetrius Hopkins, Philadelphia, 12, for Witter's WBC light welterweight title; Billy Dib, Australia, vs. Orlando Salido, Mexico, 12, featherweights; Librado Andrade, LaHabra, Calif., vs. Robert Stieglitz, Denmark, 12, IBF super middleweight title eliminator.

BASEBALL

MLB

Spring Training

AMERICAN LEAGUE
W L Pct
Tampa Bay 13 4 .765
Oakland 14 6 .700
Los Angeles 12 7 .632
Texas 11 8 .579
New York 9 7 .562
Minnesota 11 9 .550
Detroit 11 10 .524
Kansas City 10 10 .500
Baltimore 8 9 .471
Cleveland 9 11 .450
Chicago 9 12 .429
Seattle 8 11 .421
Boston 7 10 .412
Toronto 7 12 .368
———
NATIONAL LEAGUE
W L Pct
Milwaukee 14 7 .667
Florida 15 8 .652
New York 13 7 .650
Atlanta 11 8 .579
San Diego 10 9 .526
Cincinnati 11 11 .500
St. Louis 9 10 .474
Colorado 8 9 .471
Houston 9 12 .429
Washington 9 12 .429
Arizona 8 12 .400
Chicago 8 12 .400
Philadelphia 8 12 .400
Pittsburgh 8 12 .400
Los Angeles 8 13 .381
San Francisco 6 14 .300

NOTE: Split-squad games count in the standings; games against non-major league teams do not.
Tuesday's Results
Washington 9, Detroit 1
L.A. Dodgers 2, Florida 1
Pittsburgh 8, Cincinnati 4
Minnesota 4, Baltimore 2
Philadelphia 4, Tampa Bay 2
N.Y. Yankees 11, Virginia Tech 0, 7 innings
Texas 11, Oakland 6
Chicago Cubs 6, Kansas City 5
L.A. Angels 11, Milwaukee 4
San Diego 5, Chicago White Sox 0
Today's GamesToronto vs. Boston at Fort Myers, Fla., 12:05 p.m.
St. Louis vs. Baltimore at Fort Lauderdale, Fla., 1:05 p.m.
Philadelphia vs. Tampa Bay at St. Petersburg, Fla., 1:05 p.m.
L.A. (AL) vs. Oakland (ss) at Phoenix, 3:05 p.m.
Oakland (ss) vs. Chicago (NL) (ss) at Mesa, Ariz., 3:05 p.m.
Colorado vs. Chicago (AL) at Tucson, 4:05 p.m.
N.Y. (AL) vs. Pittsburgh at Bradenton, Fla., 7:05 p.m.
Atlanta vs. Houston at Kissimmee, Fla., 7:05 p.m.
Cleveland vs. N.Y. (NL) at Port St. Lucie, Fla., 7:10 p.m.
Chicago (NL) (ss) vs. San Francisco at Scottsdale, Ariz., 10:05 p.m.
Arizona vs. Seattle at Peoria, Ariz., 10:05 p.m.
Thursday's GamesFlorida vs. St. Louis at Jupiter, Fla., 1:05 p.m.
Tampa Bay vs. Cleveland at Winter Haven, Fla., 1:05 p.m.
N.Y. Yankees vs. Toronto at Dunedin, Fla., 1:05 p.m.
Pittsburgh vs. Philadelphia at Clearwater, Fla., 1:05 p.m.
Texas vs. Arizona at Tucson, Ariz., 4:05 p.m.
San Francisco vs. L.A. (AL) at Tempe, 4:05 p.m.
Chicago (AL) vs. L.A. (NL) at Phoenix, 4:05 p.m.
Colorado vs. Chicago Cubs at Mesa, Ariz., 4:05 p.m.
Milwaukee vs. Kansas City at Surprise, Ariz., 4:05 p.m.
Houston vs. Washington at Viera, Fla., 7:05 p.m.
Detroit vs. Atlanta at Kissimmee, Fla., 7:05 p.m.
Cincinnati vs. Minnesota at Fort Myers, Fla., 7:05 p.m.
Baltimore vs. N.Y. (NL) at Port St. Lucie, Fla., 7:10 p.m.
Seattle vs. San Diego at Peoria, Ariz., 10:05 p.m.
COLLEGE

Scoreboard

Tuesday's Results
EASTAmerican International 3, Bentley 2
Fordham 10, N.Y. Tech 1
Manhattanville 18, CCNY 3
N.J. City 14, Baruch 3
St. Mary's, Minn. 9-3, Amherst 6-11
St. Peter's 9, Seton Hall 6
WPI 2, Johnson & Wales, R.I. 1
SOUTHBerry 6, Thomas, Ga. 3
Georgia Tech 10, Kennesaw St. 0
Louisiana-Monroe at Centenary, ppd. weather
William & Mary 9, Rhode Island 7
MIDWESTWayne St. at Cent. Michigan, ppd., weather
SOUTHWESTSchreiner 16, Cardinal Stritch 7
TOURNAMENTS
Greater Phoenix InvitationalWilliam Paterson 13, Springfield 11
Collegiate Baseball
Top 25

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — The top 25 teams in the Collegiate Baseball poll with records through March 16, points and ranking voting by coaches, sports writers and sports information directors:
Record Pts Pvs
1. Arizona State 17-0 498 1
2. Kentucky 18-0 497 4
3. Florida State 16-1 496 3
4. Arizona 12-2 495 2
5. U.C. Irvine 14-1 492 8
6. North Carolina 14-3 489 6
7. Long Beach State 12-3 485 7
8. Missouri 13-2 480 17
9. Vanderbilt 12-4 478 12
10. Miami, Fla. 13-2 473 10
11. South Carolina 11-5 471 5
12. California 13-2-1 469 18
13. Texas 12-5 463 15
14. Rice 12-6 462 14
15. Baylor 13-4 459 9
16. Central Florida 16-1 458 20
17. Georgia Tech 13-4 457 11
18. Mississippi 13-5 456 13
19. Stanford 8-4 453 19
20. UCLA 10-5 450 23
21. Virginia 14-4 447 16
22. Nebraska 14-2 446 —
23. Texas A&M 15-4 443 24
24. Wichita State 11-3 440 —
25. Washington State 13-5 438 —

TENNIS

Pacific Life Open

(At The Indian Wells Tennis Garden, Indian Wells, Calif. Purse: Men, $3.589 million (Masters); Women, $2.1 million (Tier I); Surface: Hard-Outdoor)
Tuesday's Results
Singles
Men
Third Round

David Nalbandian (7), Argentina, def. Radek Stepanek (29), Czech Republic, 7-6 (1), 0-6, 7-6 (6).

Roger Federer (1), Switzerland, def. Nicolas Mahut, France, 6-1, 6-1.

Ivan Ljubicic (23), Croatia, def. Tommy Robredo (15), Spain, 6-3, 6-4.

Juan Carlos Ferrero (22), Spain, def. Mario Ancic, Croatia, 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (7).
Women
Quarterfinals

Daniela Hantuchova (5), Slovakia, def. Sania Mirza (21), India, 6-1, 7-6 (4).

Agnieszka Radwanska (10), Pol., def. Ashley Harkleroad, U.S., 4-6, 6-2, 6-4.

Svetlana Kuznetsova (2), Russia, def. Caroline Wozniacki, Denmark, 6-2, 6-3.

Jelena Jankovic (3), Serbia, def. Anabel Medina Garrigues (20), Spain, 6-3, 6-3.

Maria Sharapova (4), Russia, def. Alona Bondareno (15), Ukraine, 6-2, 5-7, 6-4.
Doubles
Men
Second Round

Max Mirnyi, Belarus, and Jamie Murray, Britain, def. Arnaud Clement and Michael Llodra (7), France, 7-6 (4), 6-4.

Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram (4), Israel, def. Paul-Henri Mathieu, France, and Radek Stepanek, Czech Rep., 6-2, 6-1.
Quarterfinals

Richard Gasquet, Fran., and Robert Lindstedt, Swed., def. Jonas Bjorkman, Swed.,n, and Kevin Ullyett, Zim., 6-3, 4-6, 13-11.

FOOTBALL

ARENA LEAGUE

Thursday's Game
Philadelphia at Los Angeles, 10:30 p.m.
Friday's Games
Cleveland at New Orleans, 8:30 p.m.
Columbus at Utah, 9 p.m.
New York at Arizona, 10 p.m.
Saturday's Games
Georgia at Orlando, 7:30 p.m.
Colorado at Chicago, 8 p.m.
Dallas at San Jose, 10:30 p.m.
Monday's Game
Grand Rapids at Kansas City, 8 p.m.

BASKETBALL

CBA

Playoff Glance

Conference Championship
Tuesday's Result
Minot 103, Pittsburgh 89
———
Championship
(Best-of-five)
Minot vs. OklahomaSaturday: Minot at Oklahoma
Monday: Minot at Oklahoma
March 26: Oklahoma at Minot
March 28: Oklahoma at Minot, if necessary
March 29: Oklahoma at Minot, if necessary
COLLEGE MEN National Invitation
Tournament

First Round
Tuesday's Results
Akron 65, Florida State 60 (OT)
Massachusetts 80, Stephen F. Austin 60
Ohio State 84, UNC Asheville 66
Southern Illinois 69, Oklahoma State 53
Syracuse 87, Robert Morris 81
Maryland (18-14) at Minnesota (20-13), late
Rhode Island (21-11) at Creighton (21-10), late
Alabama State (20-10) at Arizona State (19-12), late
Today's Games
Cleveland State (21-12) at Dayton (21-10), 6 p.m.
Morgan State (22-10) at Virginia Tech (19-13), 7 p.m.
UAB (22-10) at Virginia Commonwealth (24-7), 7 p.m.
UC Santa Barbara (23-8) at Mississippi (21-10), 8 p.m.
Charlotte (20-13) at Nebraska (19-12), 9 p.m.
San Diego State (20-12) at Florida (21-11), 9 p.m.
Utah State (24-10) at Illinois State (24-9), 10 p.m.
New Mexico (24-8) at California (16-15), 11 p.m.
Scoring Summaries
National Invitation Tournament


OHIO STATE 84, N.C.-ASHEVILLE 66

N.C.-ASHEVILLE (23-10) — Moles 1-3 2-4 4, Augst 8-12 0-0 20, James 0-4 1-2 1, Garland 4-9 0-0 10, Smithson 7-13 1-2 17, Gill 0-1 0-1 0, Davis 0-0 0-0 0, Smith 0-0 0-0 0, Williams 1-2 0-0 2, George 6-7 0-1 12, Ridenhour 0-1 0-0 0, Stubbs 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 27-52 4-10 66.

OHIO STATE (20-13) — Hunter 8-10 0-2 16, Koufos 7-12 1-3 15, Butler 8-15 0-0 21, Turner 1-2 0-0 2, Lighty 5-10 1-1 13, Wallace 0-2 0-0 0, Hill 0-1 0-0 0, Peters 1-3 0-0 2, Madsen 1-2 0-0 2, Diebler 3-5 0-0 8, Titus 0-0 0-0 0, Terwilliger 1-1 0-0 3, Lauderdale 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 36-64 2-6 84.

Halftime—Ohio State 45-35. 3-Point Goals—N.C.-Asheville 8-18 (Augst 4-6, Garland 2-4, Smithson 2-5, Ridenhour 0-1, Gill 0-1, James 0-1), Ohio State 10-21 (Butler 5-10, Diebler 2-4, Lighty 2-5, Terwilliger 1-1, Koufos 0-1). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—N.C.-Asheville 35 (George 11), Ohio State 26 (Koufos 4). Assists—N.C.-Asheville 16 (Garland 7), Ohio State 20 (Butler 10). Total Fouls—N.C.-Asheville 8, Ohio State 14. A—7,117.
College Basketball
Invitational

First Round
Tuesday's Results
Houston 80, Nevada 79
Ohio 80, Brown 74
Old Dominion 68, Rider 65
Virginia 66, Richmond 64
Today's Games
Cincinnati (13-18) at Bradley (17-15), 7 p.m.
Miami (Ohio) (17-15) at Tulsa (20-13), 8:05 p.m.
Valparaiso (21-13) at Washington (16-16), 9 p.m.
Utah (17-14) at Texas-El Paso (19-13), 9:05 p.m.
NCAA Division II
Tournament

Regional Championships
Tuesday's Results
Augusta State 89, Clayton State 72
Central Oklahoma 77, Tarleton State 76
California, Pa. 64, Millersville 52
Grand Valley State 75, Findlay 58
Winona State 68, Northern State 60
Bentley 88, Assumption 72
North Alabama 97, Benedict 75
Quarterfinals
March 26 Games
Augusta State (26-6) vs. Central Oklahoma (28-5), Noon
Alaska-Anchorage (28-5) vs. California, Pa. (28-5), 2:30 p.m.
Grand Valley State (36-0) vs. Winona State (35-1), 6 p.m.
Bentley (33-0) vs. North Alabama (27-8), 8:30 p.m.
COLLEGE WOMEN

Women's National
Invitation Tournament

First Round
Today's Games
American (19-12) at Villanova (15-15), 7 p.m.
Iona (19-13) at Quinnipiac (25-5), 7 p.m.
Western Carolina (25-8) at Middle Tennessee (21-11), 8 p.m. Thursday's Games
Radford (23-11) at James Madison (22-9), 7 p.m.
Dayton (25-8) at Bowling Green (25-7), 7 p.m.
Dartmouth (15-15) at Vermont (23-8), 7 p.m.
Arkansas-Little Rock (23-8) at Southern Mississippi (19-13), 8 p.m.
Prairie View (21-10) at Texas State (20-10), 8 p.m.
Creighton (20-11) at South Dakota State (23-6), 8 p.m.
Southeast Missouri (23-8) at Evansville (20-11), 8:35 p.m.
Idaho State (20-9) at Boise State (23-6), 9:05 p.m.
UC Davis (19-11) at Gonzaga (24-8), 10 p.m.
Friday's Games
North Carolina A&T (24-6) at South Carolina (15-15), 7 p.m.
South Florida (16-15) at Florida Gulf Coast (19-8), 7 p.m.
Saturday's Games
Virginia Commonwealth (25-7) at Charlotte (18-13), Noon
Wisconsin-Green Bay (26-5) at Drake (22-10), 5:07 p.m.
———
Second Round
Friday's Game
Western Carolina-Middle Tennessee winner at Kentucky (15-15), 7 p.m.
Saturday's Games
Dayton-Bowling Green winner at Michigan State (19-13), 2 p.m.
Radford-James Madison winner at Indiana (18-14), 7 p.m.
Prairie View-Texas State winner at Texas Tech (16-15), 8 p.m.
American-Villanova winner at Wisconsin (16-13), 8 p.m.
Monday's Games
Virginia Commonwealth-Charlotte winner at Michigan (17-13), 7 p.m.
North Carolina A&T-South Carolina winner at N.C. State (18-12), 7 p.m.
Wisconsin-Green Bay-Drake winner at Illinois (19-14), 8 p.m.
Southeast Missouri-Evansville winner at Kansas (16-15), 8 p.m.
UC Davis-Gonzaga winner at Colorado (16-14), 9 p.m.
Iona-Quinnipiac winner at St. John's (16-14), TBA
Dartmouth-Vermont winner at Boston College (20-10), TBA
South Florida-Florida Gulf Coast winner at Florida (18-13), TBA
Creighton-South Dakota State winner at Marquette (16-14), TBA
Idaho State-Boise State winner at TCU (21-11), TBA
Arkansas-Little Rock-Southern Mississippi vs. Mississippi State (16-14), TBA

HOCKEY

AHL

EASTERN CONFERENCE
Atlantic Division
W L OL SL Pts GF GA
x-Providence 46 15 3 3 98 234 180
Portland 41 22 2 4 88 215 184
Hartford 40 19 2 6 88 209 166
Springfield 30 27 5 5 70 182 204
Manchester 30 28 5 4 69 192 202
Worcester 26 30 4 6 62 177 214
Lowell 21 34 7 4 53 152 216
East Division
W L OL SL Pts GF GA
Philadelphia 40 23 2 3 85 198 170
Wilkes-Barre 40 24 0 3 83 183 152
Albany 37 26 2 4 80 181 171
Hershey 34 27 1 5 74 204 206
Binghamton 31 27 7 4 73 190 210
Bridgeport 34 29 1 2 71 178 187
Norfolk 24 37 2 5 55 186 230
WESTERN CONFERENCE
North Division
W L OL SL Pts GF GA
Toronto 40 18 3 5 88 197 174
Manitoba 38 24 2 3 81 188 160
Syracuse 34 26 2 6 76 193 179
Hamilton 31 28 2 5 69 168 184
Grand Rapids 27 33 2 5 61 177 203
Lake Erie 24 31 4 7 59 177 214
Rochester 18 38 6 4 46 149 225
West Division
W L OL SL Pts GF GA
Chicago 46 16 2 2 96 250 181
San Antonio 36 20 3 7 82 199 186
Rockford 36 22 4 6 82 211 200
Milwaukee 37 25 3 2 79 201 181
Houston 35 24 2 3 75 164 149
Peoria 33 26 4 4 74 205 196
Quad City 31 27 2 7 71 178 185
Iowa 31 31 4 2 68 183 212

x-clinched playoff spot

NOTE: Two points are awarded for a win, one point for an overtime or shootout loss.
Tuesday's Results
Lake Erie 7, Chicago 5
Today's Games
Hershey at Albany, 7 p.m.
Toronto at Grand Rapids, 7 p.m.
Philadelphia at Hartford, 7 p.m.
Manchester at Springfield, 7 p.m.
Hamilton at Syracuse, 7 p.m.
Lowell at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, 7:05 p.m.
Bridgeport at Worcester, 7:05 p.m.
Providence at Norfolk, 7:15 p.m.
Quad City at Houston, 8:05 p.m.
San Antonio at Manitoba, 8:30 p.m.
Thursday's Games
Rochester at Lake Erie, 7 p.m.
Chicago at Houston, 8:05 p.m.
San Antonio at Manitoba, 8:30 p.m.