National Digest
Son takes over
LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — Bob Knight left when he wanted to this time.
Almost a decade after he was fired by Indiana, the school he led to three national championships, Knight walked away from college basketball in midseason.
The Texas Tech coach, known as much for his brilliance as his fiery temper, abruptly resigned and handed over the team to his son.
It was a stunning midseason move by the winningest men’s coach in major college basketball, who gave no hint a change was coming. Pat Knight, a Red Raiders assistant, was appointed his father’s successor in 2005.
The 67-year-old Knight informed Texas Tech athletic director Gerald Myers of his decision in a meeting around noon, Texas Tech chancellor Kent Hance told The Associated Press. Knight then called Hance and told him.
“He’s ready,” Pat Knight said during his weekly radio program. “He’s tired.”
“There’s a transition that’s going to take place here from me to Pat and I’ve dwelt on this all year long ... how it would be best for him and for the team and for what we can do in the long run to make this the best thing for Texas Tech,” Knight told the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, which first reported the resignation.
BRISTOL, Conn. (AP) — No. 15 Drake will travel to No. 11 Butler in ESPN’s BracketBuster games to be played later this month between prominent teams from mid-major conferences.
The Feb. 23 matchup of Drake (20-1) and Butler (19-2) features teams with the best records and highest rankings in the six-year history of the event.
Game times for the 14 matchups will be announced next Monday.
Also, Davidson and Winthrop will end a 16-year drought between games when they face off Feb. 22. Davidson (15-6, 13-0 Southern Conference) has won 11 straight games. Winthrop (14-8, 5-2 Big South Conference) has struggled some, but holds wins over Miami and Georgia Tech. The Eagles upset Notre Dame last season in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
Other matchups include: UC Santa Barbara at Utah State; Kent State at Saint Mary’s; Virginia Commonwealth at Akron; Marist at Cleveland State; Siena at Boise State; Wisconsin-Milwaukee at Bradley; Rider at Cal State Northridge; George Mason at Ohio; Creighton at Oral Roberts; Nevada at Southern Illinois; Miami (Ohio) at Valparaiso and Wright State at Illinois State.
Northern Iowa (14-8, 6-5 MVC) will host Illinois-Chicago (12-10, 6-5 Horizon League) in an ESPNU BracketBusters event 7 p.m. Feb. 23.
Ratings record
NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Giants thrilling win over the New England Patriots was the most-watched Super Bowl ever, with 97.5 million viewers, Nielsen Media Research said Monday.
The game eclipsed the previous record of 94.08 million, set when Dallas faced Pittsburgh in 1996. More people watched Sunday’s game than all but one American television broadcast ever, the “M-A-S-H” finale in 1983, which was seen by 106 million viewers.
The game had almost all the ingredients Fox could have hoped for: a tight contest with an exciting finish involving a team that tried and failed to make history as the NFL’s first unbeaten team since 1972.
The Giants ended New England’s bid for perfection 17-14 in a game where the teams were never separated by more than a touchdown.
BASEBALL
WASHINGTON (AP) — New York Yankees pitcher Andy Pettitte spoke under oath for about 2 1/2 hours with lawyers from a congressional committee looking into drug use in baseball.
After the deposition, Pettitte did not take questions from reporters as he walked out of the offices of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. Wearing a pinstriped gray suit and bright striped tie, Pettitte was accompanied by his wife and three lawyers.
His interview is part of preparation for a Feb. 13 public hearing expected to focus on Roger Clemens’ denials of allegations about his use of performance enhancers made in the Mitchell Report by former personal trainer Brian McNamee.
DETROIT (AP) — Outfielder Curtis Granderson and the Detroit Tigers agreed to a five-year contract that includes a club option for 2013.
Granderson had a breakout season last year, hitting .302 with 23 homers and 74 RBIs along with 38 doubles, 23 triples and 26 stolen bases. He led the majors in triples with the highest total since Ty Cobb had one more in 1917.
Granderson, who earned two degrees at the University of Illinois at Chicago, has represented Major League Baseball as an ambassador during the past two offseasons in Europe and Africa. The Chicago-area native turns 27 on March 16.
TENNIS
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Shaking off nerves, 22-year-old Fed Cup rookie Ashley Harkleroad rallied from a 4-1 deficit in the second set to beat Germany’s Sabine Lisicki 6-4, 7-5 on a picture-perfect Southern California day to clinch the quarterfinal match.
Harkleroad’s victory followed Lindsay Davenport’s 6-1, 6-2 win over 19-year-old Julia Goerges in reverse singles, sending the United States into a World Group semifinal road match against Maria Sharapova and defending Fed Cup champion Russia in April.
Harkleroad, of Rossville, Ga., was brilliant in her debut in the women’s equivalent of the Davis Cup. She won both of her singles matches in straight sets, carrying the Americans after the veteran Davenport faltered badly in losing Saturday’s opening singles match in straight sets to the 18-year-old Lisicki.
After play was postponed by a steady rain on Sunday, the 31-year-old Davenport regained her pride and her game in beating Goerges to give the Americans a 2-1 lead in the best-of-5 match.
FIGURE SKATING
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — Kimmie Meissner is hoping a new coach can solve her problems.
The former world champion, whose season-long struggles included a seventh-place finish at the recent national championships, announced she is leaving longtime coach Pam Gregory to train with Richard Callaghan for the next six weeks. Meissner will work with Callaghan, who coached Olympic gold medalist Tara Lipinski, through the world championships, which are March 17-23 in Sweden.
Meissner won the 2006 world championships and followed it up with her first U.S. title last year. But she finished last at the six-person Grand Prix final in December and retooled her free skate in hopes of getting herself back on track at the national championships.
FOOTBALL
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Jailed quarterback Michael Vick can keep all but $3.75 million of the nearly $20 million in bonus money he received from the Atlanta Falcons following a ruling by a federal judge.
The Falcons sought to recover the bonuses after Vick pleaded guilty to federal charges in a dogfighting operation. The bonuses were paid from 2004-07.
A special master ruled in October the Falcons were entitled to recover the bonuses. The Falcons argued Vick used proceeds from a contract he signed in 2004 to finance his illicit activities.
But U.S. District Judge David Doty of Minneapolis ruled that recovery of most of the bonus money by the Falcons would violate the NFL collective bargaining agreement. The agreement does not allow roster bonus money to be forfeited once it’s been earned, the judge wrote.
Vick received a 23-month jail sentence and entered a minimum-security prison in Leavenworth, Kan., last month. The league has suspended Vick indefinitely without pay.
GOLF
SEATTLE (AP) — The Champions Tour and Boeing Co. announced a four-year extension that will keep the Boeing Classic and professional golf in the Seattle area through 2012.
Boeing’s sponsorship of the event was set to expire after this year’s tournament.
With the new contract comes increased prize money for the players, who, along with the community, have warmly received the event, now entering its fourth year. This year’s purse will be $1.7 million, up from $1.6 million last year. It will increase each year until it reaches more than $2 million in the final year of the contract in 2012.
The event will remain at the TPC at Snoqualmie Ridge, a Jack Nicklaus-designed course that opened in 1999. The tournament’s contract with the course about 30 miles east of downtown Seattle — runs through 2009.
