College basketball countdown: No. 9 Villanova

As a youngster growing up in Herndon, Va., Villanova senior Scottie Reynolds rooted for the Maryland Terrapins, so naturally his favorite buzzer-beater was Drew Nicholas' fadeaway 3-pointer that beat UNC Wilmington in an NCAA first-round game in 2003. Now Reynolds has a new No. 1 buzzer-beater: his own shining moment in the NCAA Tournament. Reynolds' thrilling length-of-the-court-drive through the Pitt defense last season sent the Wildcats to the Final Four for the first time since 1985. "It's a lot different around here now," said Reynolds of life on the Villanova campus. "Everyone has embraced us like we won the national championship. The buzz is still that strong." Villanova is among the favorites to make a return trip to the Final Four...

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Basketball becomes bat-sketball as player swats Halloween night invader

It was with an uncanny sense of timing that a bat chose Halloween to disrupt the NBA tie between San Antonio Spurs and the Sacramento Kings. What, perhaps, the creature did not count on were the quick hands of the Spurs' Manu Ginobili who, not content with scoring 13 points in his side's 113-94 win, swatted it from the air as it swooped across the court.The bat had already sent players to the sidelines twice in the first quarter. The officials stopped the game as it circled then flew across the AT&T Center's court. First they called for a towel to catch it, then a net. But Ginobili took matters, literally, into his own hands. When the bat returned he simply smacked it to the ground before calmly carrying it off court to thunderous applause.After...

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Federer disappointed by Agassi drug admission

ZURICH — World number one Roger Federer on Thursday voiced disappointment at Andre Agassi's bombshell admission that he had taken drugs in 1997 and then lied to the ATP to avoid a ban."It was a shock when I heard the news. I am disappointed and I hope there are no more such cases in future," Federer said at a sponsors meeting at Kilchberg near Zurich.But Federer also noted that Agassi "has done a lot for tennis, both as a player and as a human being"."Today, he raises millions of dollars for his foundation for disadvantaged children," the Swiss commented.Agassi, one of just six men to have won all four Grand Slam titles and widely regarded as one of the sport's finest players, stunned tennis this week by revealing he'd taken the highly-addictive...

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How tennis world reacted to Andre Agassi’s admission of taking crystal meth

Andre Agassi’s autobiography, ‘Open’, has been the talk of tennis since extracts were published in which he admitted to using crystal meth, with Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal, Boris Becker, Andy Roddick and many others having an opinion. Rafa Nadal: “If the ATP covered for Agassi then I think that’s dreadful. If they covered for the player and punished others for doing the same kind of thing then that would seem to me to be a lack of respect for all sportsmen.” Roger Federer: “It was a shock when I heard the news. I am disappointed and I hope there are no more such cases in future.” Darren Cahill (Agassi’s last professional coach): “[Agassi is] extremely proud of the book and I’m proud of him for giving such an honest...

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Serena Williams withdraws from next week's Fed Cup Finals

Serena Williams has withdrawn from the U.S. vs. Italy Fed Cup by BNP Paribas World Group Final set to take place November 7-8 in Reggio Calabria, Italy. Williams will be replaced by Vania King. King will be making her sixth appearance on the U.S. Fed Cup te...

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Hussey guides Aussies to 229-5 against India

Sunday, November 01, 2009NEW DELHI: Michael Hussey top-scored with an unbeaten 81 as Australia posted 229-5 in the third One-day International against India here on Saturday.Hussey, 34, hit his third half-century of the series and shared 56 runs with captain Ricky Ponting (59) after the world champions won the toss and elected to bat on a slow track at the Ferozeshah Kotla stadium.Opener Shane Watson made up for his disappointing batting in the first two matches, making a fine 41 off 59 balls with five fours in the day-night encounter.Left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja impressed the most among the bowlers on the tricky track, picking 2-41 off nine overs.The seven-match series is tied 1-1 after India won the second match at Nagpur by 99 runs. Australia had clinched the opener at Vadodara by four...

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