<h4>It's a bird . . it's a plane . . . it's . . .: </h4>
Ex-Arizona Wildcat Jim Furyk and his caddie, Mike Cowan, point to the sky on the 12th tee during the second round of the Masters on Friday.
Ossie Duran says the judges aren’t doing David “The Destroyer” Lopez any favors.
Giving him wins – something the Duran camp said happened Friday night in a boxing match at the Desert Diamond Casino – won’t help long-term.
“He’s not benefiting from being given these gifts,” said Phillip Schevack, Duran’s adviser. “In the short run he is, but not in the long run.”
Lopez won by unanimous decision in front of a sellout crowd in the main event, which was televised on ESPN2.
Duran, from Ghana, claims he won the junior middleweight fight.
“You could see by his face,” said Duran (23-7-2). “Look at mine, it’s clean.”
Lopez, who is under the guidance of Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions, had a deep bruise under his right eye. He admitted it was one of his tougher fights in recent bouts.
“He’s a very good boxer who moves a lot,” said Lopez, who improved his record to 38-12. “He has a lot of qualities. But it was a good experience for me.
“It was good to be in the ring with someone like that.”
Lopez added he’d be better prepared for a bigger fight if he gets one. His camp expects one soon.
Lopez struggled in the early rounds but recovered late. He said he had to be tentative early because he didn’t know much about Duran and was cautious.
Conversely, Duran said he saw nothing from Lopez.
“I didn’t see tough,” Duran said. If he’d go to a party – he can’t go to a party (and look good),” Duran said, referring to Lopez’s bruised eye.
Duran said Lopez won because Tucson is like a home court for the Nogales native. In Lopez’s past 13 wins, he’s won seven at Desert Diamond Casino.
“This is like his living room,” Schevack said.
• In other fights Friday: Karl Dargan defeated Rudy Valdez by TKO in the fourth round; Hector Sanchez defeated DeMarcus Corley by unanimous decision; Hylon Williams won by unanimous decision over Derrick Moon; Rock Allen won by unanimous decision over Adan Hernandez; and Tucsonan Eric Woods fell to Andrae Carthron by TKO.
Angels honor Adenhart
ANAHEIM, Calif. – Torii Hunter and John Lackey stood on the pitcher’s mound at Angel Stadium, each holding Nick Adenhart’s jersey, their caps off and heads bowed.
The rest of the Los Angeles Angels took their places along the third-base line, while the Boston Red Sox lined up on the first-base side.
The pregame music went quiet and a hush fell over the red-clad crowd.
The Angels paid tribute Friday night with a moment of silence for Adenhart and two of his friends who were killed about 36 hours earlier in a car crash after being broadsided by a suspected drunken driver.
Andrew Thomas Gallo, a 22-year-old from San Gabriel, was charged with three counts of murder by the Orange County district attorney on Friday. He ran a red light in his minivan and hit the car carrying Adenhart and his friends, police said.
Hours later, Adenhart’s smiling face appeared on the stadium’s video board, followed by clips of him pitching six scoreless innings Wednesday against Oakland in the best game of his brief major league career.
Cameras flashed in the stands as the teams and crowd stood silently.
Then Lackey and Hunter hugged before Lackey carried Adenhart’s jersey back to the dugout.
Hunter jogged slowly toward center field, headed to the black-and-white picture of Adenhart on the wall. Hunter touched the photo next to No. 34 and Adenhart’s name in a black circle, then took his usual position to start the game.
Angels players wore a No. 34 patch on their uniforms. Adenhart’s number also was painted in red on the back slope of the pitcher’s mound, where he had struck out opposing batters two nights earlier.
He was at his locker that night when teammate Joe Saunders leaned over, patted the rookie on the back and said, “Great job.”
D’backs to host 2011 game
PHOENIX – The Arizona Diamondbacks and Chase Field have been chosen to host the 2011 All-Star game.
The formal announcement will be made Saturday at a news conference by commissioner Bud Selig.
“I’m excited. It’s a long time coming,” Arizona Diamondbacks manager Bob Melvin said Friday before his team played the Los Angeles Dodgers.
“With the NBA All-Star game, which was well-received here, I know our building can be shown off for the first time in that type of scenario. I’m sure the fans of Phoenix are excited about it and it will be well-received here.”
The Associated Press
NFL Network, Dish agree
NEW YORK – The NFL Network and Dish Network announced a settlement Friday that ends a lawsuit over how the satellite provider broadcasts the channel.
The agreement includes a multiyear deal for Dish to continue carrying NFL Network. Terms of the settlement were not disclosed.
“We are very pleased that our NFL Network will continue to be distributed in millions of homes on Dish Network,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said in a release.
In January 2008, Dish moved the channel from its most widely distributed, 100-channel package to the second-most widely distributed 200-channel tier. The company claimed the NFL violated their contract the previous month when it simulcast the historic Patriots-Giants game on CBS and NBC.
The two sides had amended their original deal in 2006 when the network began airing live regular-season games.
The Associated Press
NUMBER OF THE DAY
612
Career home runs hit by Ken Griffey Jr., the most among active players. Other leaders:
2. Alex Rodriguez 553
3. Jim Thome 542
4. Manny Ramirez 527
5. Gary Sheffield 499
6. Carlos Delgado 470
7. Chipper Jones 409
8. Jason Giambi 396
9. Vladimir Guerrero 392
QUOTABLE
'You're supposed to show up and have fun going to the ballpark, but it doesn't seem like that is appropriate today':
TERRY FRANCONA,
Red Sox manager and ex-Arizona Wildcat, on playing the Angels a day after Los Angeles pitcher Nick Adenhart was killed
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SPORTS SOUND-OFF
Coaches will make game fun to watch
Re: UA-ASU hoops rivalry
I have always thought Herb was a great coach. ASU should be very thankful they got him. I am excited to see what Miller and his staff will do for the Wildcat program. I also believe this rivalry between the two schools will bring out the best in both coaches. Seems like it’s going to be even more fun to watch in the years to come.
JUST A FAN
Re: UA’s new assistant coaches
God I am glad we have three very young coaches that have worked together. I know this will be a great year for basketball for UA. Now we can get down to business with a real head coach.
MARCIPLUS4
Miller has to keep Geary. Without him we lose all connections to California. If (UCLA’s Ben) Howland gets every top player, Arizona will never pass them to win the Pac-10. Geary is a must.
SPORTSADDICT
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ON THIS DATE
1936: The Detroit Red Wings win the NHL Stanley Cup with a 3-1 victory over Toronto.
1965: Jack Nicklaus shoots a record 271 and wins the Masters by nine strokes over Arnold Palmer and Gary Player.
1989: Ron Hextall scores his second career goal and becomes the first goalie to connect for a playoff goal, and the Philadelphia Flyers beat the Washington Capitals 8-5.
2008: Missouri’s Jacob Priday sets a Big 12 Conference record, hitting four home runs against Texas in a 31-12 rout. The senior goes 5-for-5, drives in nine runs and scores six times.