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In the opener, Deron Williams scored 20 points and dished 10 assists as the fourth-seeded Jazz rolled to a relatively easy 93-82 win over No. 5 Houston on Saturday at the Toyota Center.

All-Star Carlos Boozer had 20 points and 16 rebounds in the victory, while forward Andrei Kirilenko scored 21 points for the Jazz.

Tracy McGrady scored 20 points and handed out seven assists for the Rockets, who played without starting point guard Rafer Alston. Alston is out for at least the first two games of this series with a pulled right hamstring. Shane Battier scored 22 points for the Rockets, who rallied from down 13 in the first half to take the lead in the third quarter, only to see the Jazz jump back on top.

McGrady has not been on the winning side in an NBA playoff series (0-6) during his career.

The new members are jockeys Edgar Prado and Ismael "Milo" Valenzuela, trainer Carl Nafzger along with former champion thoroughbreds Manila, Inside Information and Ancient Title.

Prado gained international acclaim in 2006 with his Kentucky Derby-winning ride aboard Barbaro and his actions two weeks later in the Preakness Stakes when Barbaro suffered a career ending injury.

The 40-year-old Prado is a native of Peru and has compiled more than 6,000 victories and earnings of better than $202 million. He was the winning jockey of the 2002 and 2004 Belmont Stakes -- both times preventing Triple Crown sweeps by War Emblem and Smarty Jones, respectively.

This year, through Sunday, Prado has won 64 races in 353 mounts. He is second in earnings to Robby Albarado with $6,167,577.

In the opener, superstar LeBron James scored 32 points, including two straight key buckets down the stretch and the Cavaliers used a fourth-quarter surge against the Wizards to earn a 93-86 victory on Saturday at Quicken Loans Arena.

James also grabbed six rebounds and dished out four assists, while Zydrunas Ilgauskas ended with 22 points and 11 boards for the Cavaliers, who outscored the Wizards 28-17 in the final quarter and closed the game on an 11-2 run.

Cleveland has won seven straight over the Wizards in the postseason. The last time Washington defeated the Cavaliers in the playoffs was on April 30, 2006 in Game 4 of the first round.

Antawn Jamison led the Wizards with 23 points and a game-high 19 rebounds, while Gilbert Arenas scored 24 off the bench for Washington, which shot 6- of-24 from three-point range and committed 13 turnovers in the loss.

Ginobili led the Spurs in scoring, averaging a career-high 19.5 points to go with 4.8 rebounds and 4.5 assists. Ginobili came off the bench in 51 of the 74 games he played this season.

"I really don't care about coming from the bench if that helps the team to win a championship," Ginobili said.

The Spurs have a 1-0 lead over the Phoenix Suns in their best-of-seven first-round playoff series. Suns guard Leandro Barbosa won the award last year and Ginobili came in second.

"He's one of the better players in the NBA, who just happens to come off the bench," said Spurs starting guard Michael Finley. "Any other team in the league, he'd probably be starting, but for him to come off the bench and put his ego aside it just shows what kind of team we have, and more importantly what kind of player and All-Star he is."

Abderrahime Bouramdane visited for the first time on Monday, learning what thousands before him have come to understand as they reached Heartbreak Hill, 20 miles in.

"Up," he said, "is the problem."

Cheruiyot pulled away from Bouramdane as they entered the Newton Hills, reaching the crest of Heartbreak Hill with a 27-second lead and coasting to the sixth-fastest time in Boston Marathon history.

Dire Tune outkicked Alevtina Biktimirova after a back-and-forth last mile to win by 2 seconds in the closest finish in the history of the women's race. Cheruiyot, of Kenya, and Tune, of Ethiopia, each earned a recently enhanced prize of $150,000 - the biggest in major marathon history.

Brian Spear's bases-loaded walk in the 10th inning Sunday forced Keenan Wiley home and lifted Kentucky to a 3-2 victory over Florida.

Wiley had half of UK's six hits, including a leadoff bloop double to start the 10th.

"We knew they'd been throwing a lot of fastballs away, and that's really the pitch I was looking for," Wiley said. "And I got it."

The rubber game of a three-game Southeastern Conference series would have ended in a tie had UK not scored in the 10th. League travel curfew for "get-away day" games meant that no inning could begin after 4 p.m. It was 4:05 when Spear took ball four.

Encarnacion expected it.

The third baseman let Milwaukee pull ahead in the top of the inning with yet another error. Then he hit a solo homer, his second of the game, that sparked the Cincinnati Reds toward a slump-busting, 4-3 win Sunday.

"I knew my error could lose the game," said Encarnacion, who has six of Cincinnati's 11 errors this season.

Instead, Paul Bako followed with another solo shot off Gagne (1-1), who was pitching for the fourth day in a row. Ken Griffey Jr. eventually ended it with a run-scoring single off Salomon Torres.

Sterwins, winning the $150,000 Grade III Ben Ali Stakes for Pierce and owner Eugene Melnyk, actually was completing the Pierce weekend exacta: the Ben Ali Stakes Sunday and the Giant's Causeway Stakes with Danceroftherealm on Saturday.

Sterwins paid $28.80, coming from last to win the 11/8-mile race on the Polytrack.

With Shaun Bridgmohan riding, Sterwins blew past the favorite, Go Between, in the stretch to defeat the latter by 31/4 lengths, Sir Whimsey following in third place in the field of six.

It wasn't the biggest race that Melnyk Racing Stables has won, for among the Canadian operation's credits has been the Breeders' Cup Sprint with Speightstown. Yet the Ben Ali was significant because the race revealed a new dimension for Sterwins.

Patrick finished 5.8594 seconds ahead of pole-sitter Helio Castroneves on the 1.5-mile Twin Ring Motegi oval after leader Scott Dixon pitted with five laps left and Dan Wheldon and Tony Kanaan came in a lap later.

"It's a long time coming. Finally," Patrick said. "It was a fuel strategy race, but my team called it perfectly for me. I knew I was on the same strategy as Helio and when I passed him for the lead, I couldn't believe it. This is fabulous."

The 26-year-old Patrick won in her 50th career IndyCar start, taking the lead from Castroneves on the 198th lap in the 200-lap race.

"I think Danica is such a fantastic person, and I'm thrilled for her that the monkey is finally off of her back," said Michael Andretti, co-owner of Andretti Green Racing. "We have all believed in her and she proved today that she is a winner."

The Bucks introduced Skiles as their new coach Monday, signing the former Chicago Bulls and Phoenix Suns coach to a four-year deal to replace someone Skiles considers a close friend, Larry Krystkowiak.

And while Skiles said he learned some lessons after the Bulls fired him in December, he isn't backing away from his reputation for demanding a lot from his players.

"I always feel like I'm supposed to apologize for that," Skiles said. "And I'm not sure that's the tack I want to take. Anybody that is going to come to work with enthusiasm, concentrate and play hard will never have a problem with me. I don't care if they throw the ball in the seats 25 times a game."

He doesn't?

But others said, no sweat, it's overrated.

"They were wrong," Armstrong said shortly after finishing his first Boston Marathon on Monday in 2 hours, 50 minutes, 58 seconds.

Heartbreak Hill, the last in a series of hills between miles 18 and 21, is a key test for runners nearing the end of the up and down course. The first of the hills was the worst, Armstrong said, and the heartbreaker lived up to its name.

"They are harder and they do come at a difficult time in the race," he said.

Galarraga (2-0) has won back-to-back starts since being called up from Triple-A Toledo last week to replace Dontrelle Willis, sidelined by a hyperextended knee.

The 26-year-old Galarraga blanked the Blue Jays on three singles for 5 1-3 innings. He struck out four and walked four.

Galarraga, who beat Cleveland last week, lowered his ERA to 1.50. He has not allowed a hit to a right-hander in 21 at-bats since joining the Tigers.

The Blue Jays loaded the bases against Galarraga in both the third and fourth innings, but failed to score each time. Toronto finished 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position Monday and went 7-for-56 (.125) with runners in scoring position on this six-game homestand, winning just twice.

The Cincinnati Bengals said Monday they were informed by commissioner Roger Goodell that Thurman is eligible to play. He was suspended the last two seasons because of violations of the NFL's substance abuse policy.

He had been cleared in January by the NFL to resume working out with the Bengals pending word on his status.

"Odell has met the NFL's conditions for reinstatement and has been added to our offseason roster," Bengals coach Marvin Lewis said in a statement. "It is now up to Odell to continue to meet all NFL guidelines, and to maintain a standard of personal responsibility that will allow him the chance to compete for a spot on our team."

A second-round draft pick from Georgia in 2005, Thurman started 15 games at middle linebacker, led the team in tackles and tied the team rookie record with five interceptions.

He was being too modest.

Domniguez, of Cuba, won the 71.8-mile opening stage of the weeklong Georgia race Monday, sprinting across the finish line a tenth of a second ahead of a crowded peloton.

"I had a lot of guys saying, 'Yeah, tomorrow's for you, short and flat the way you like,' and I was like, 'sure'" Dominguez said. "I was really surprised when I won, because I'm not doing 100 percent yet."

Dominguez finished the stage from Tybee Island to Savannah in 2 hours, 30 minutes, 18 seconds. Right at his elbows were Nicholas Sanderson of Australia in second place, followed by Robert Forster of Germany. Both finished 0.1 seconds behind the leader.

And while Young has had memorable moments as a passer, he's not had nearly enough of them. That's why the Titans announced after a 17-6 wild-card loss to San Diego that their offseason focus would be improving the offense.

They have been busy in free agency, and now the Titans prepare for the NFL Draft with their first-round pick, No. 24 overall, likely to be used on offense. General manager Mike Reinfeldt says Tennessee wants to continue adding playmakers.

"If one were looking for a playmaker, you could argue we're in a good spot to get a pretty good guy at 24," Reinfeldt said.

Tennessee already has signed tight end Alge Crumpler, given receiver Justin Gage a new deal and brought back receiver Justin McCareins for a second stint. Coach Jeff Fisher fired Norm Chow and lured Mike Heimerdinger back as his offensive coordinator.

Does Dimitroff, in his first year as general manager, select Boston College quarterback Matt Ryan to further distance the Falcons from the Michael Vick era?

Would defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey of Louisiana State be the wise choice, especially since the Falcons could take a quarterback with one of their three second-round picks?

Other possibilities may include Virginia defensive end Chris Long, Arkansas running back Darren McFadden and Ohio State defensive end Vernon Gholston.

The Miami Dolphins, who have the first pick, have been in negotiations with Michigan offensive tackle Jake Long.

Even before Steve McNair announced his retirement last week, the Ravens targeted quarterback as a deficiency. In falling from 13-3 in 2006 to 5-11 last season, Baltimore's offense sputtered under the direction of an injured McNair, an inconsistent Kyle Boller and a raw Troy Smith.

There's no guarantee Ryan is the answer, and that's one reason why the Ravens are reluctant to move up to get him. General manager Ozzie Newsome forked over his first-round pick and a second rounder in 2003 to get Boller, whose development has been so slow that Baltimore selected Smith last season and is strongly considering taking another quarterback in the first round Saturday.

But the Ravens are also thin at cornerback, defensive end and safety, and will likely need a new left tackle if Jonathan Ogden limps into retirement after a frustrating 2007 season.

So, when asked last week if might trade up from eighth overall, Newsome replied, "I think the biggest obstacle for people trading up is what they have to give up to move up into that top five. It's not easy to move up into the top five (or) to the top six without basically giving up the majority of your draft."

Julio Lugo went 4-for-4 with a walk and an RBI as the Red Sox scored at least five runs for the ninth straight game. They finished with 12 hits and 11 walks.

The annual game on Patriots Day - a holiday commemorating Paul Revere's ride and the battles of Lexington and Concord in 1775 - began at 11:06 a.m. It takes place on the same day as the Boston Marathon. Runners passed by Fenway Park starting in the third inning and kept going for hours - just like the Red Sox offense.

And they did it without two of their leading hitters. Manny Ramirez, who was ejected for arguing a third strike in the second inning Sunday, is batting .338 and got the day off. Lefty hitter Sean Casey, with a .349 average, rested against lefty Kason Gabbard.

Boston rallied late to win its previous two games but didn't need a comeback this time as it scored five runs in a wild fourth inning and three in the fifth, all off Dustin Nippert (1-2).

South African Ernst Van Dyk won in 1 hour, 26 minutes, 49 seconds, setting a record with a seventh victory in the men's wheelchair division at Boston.

In the women's race, Japan's Wakako Tsuchida won her second straight, beating her closest competitor, Canadian Diane Roy, by nearly 8 minutes.

Tsuchida finished in 1:48:32, nearly 5 minutes better than her time last year. Roy finished in 1:56:18.

Van Dyk's time was the second slowest of his seven wins. Countryman Krige Schabot was second in 1:30:39.

Nicklas Lidstrom and Jiri Hudler each scored, and the Red Wings closed out their opening series by beating the Nashville Predators 3-0 in Game 6 on Sunday.

Brian Rafalski added an empty-netter with 4.8 seconds left. Goalie Chris Osgood stopped 20 shots for the shutout in his second straight playoff start as top-seeded Detroit became the first road team to win in this series.

With the victory, Detroit passed Toronto for second on the list of playoff series won with its 59th.

Nashville had hoped to use hot goalie Dan Ellis and an earsplitting crowd to force Game 7 in Detroit on Tuesday night. But the Predators missed their best scoring chance when David Legwand hit a post in the first period, and they failed to advance out of the first round for a fourth straight postseason - each time on their home ice.

There were about 100 people waiting for her in the resort lobby, some seeking pictures and autographs, others hoisting glasses of champagne.

Ochoa wanted to sprint away, but she paused for another few minutes. After all, this was deserving of one more celebration.

The 26-year-old Ochoa became the first LPGA Tour player in 45 years to win four tournaments in consecutive weeks. The world's No. 1 player shot a 3-under 69 in the final round of the Ginn Open on Sunday and beat rookie Yani Tseng by three strokes for her fifth victory in six starts this year.

"I'm very grateful. It's been a blessing, you know," Ochoa said. "But I know that bad times will come. It's just the way life is. I'm just trying to enjoy my moment, and I would like to enjoy it for a long time. So even if it's going to be an up-and-down ride, hopefully I can stay there."

The 13th-seeded Ferrero came from behind to beat improving Frenchman Michael Llodra 6-7 (5-7), 6-1, 6-1, while a 14th-seeded Murray handled Spaniard Feliciano Lopez 7-6 (7-5), 6-4 on the red clay at Monte Carlo Country Club. Ferrero titled here back-to-back in 2002 and 2003.

A mild Day-2 upset came when Serbian Janko Tipsarevic tripped up ninth-seeded Frenchman Paul-Henri Mathieu 6-4, 2-6, 6-3.

Playing his last match in Monte Carlo, former top-ranked star and former three-time French Open champion Gustavo Kuerten came up a loser at the hands of Croatian Ivan Ljubicic, who prevailed 6-1, 6-2. "Guga," who will retire from the ATP after the upcoming 2008 French Open, was the Monte Carlo champion back in 1999 and 2001.

The Brazilian Kuerten entered the draw as a wild card this week.

Phelps' hiring came less than a week after Davis took the Providence job. School officials said Phelps was their top choice.

Phelps recalled hearing from Drake athletic director Sandy Hatfield Clubb.

"One day last week, Sandy called me ... and told me about Drake University, about the Drake experience and immediately I just got excited," Phelps said after his introductory news conference.

"We had another conversation on the phone. I was up here the next day, and now I'm the coach. It was just a whirlwind," he said.

The 69-year-old McDonnell has won more national championships than any other collegiate coach in any sport.

"It is hard to imagine that any coach in intercollegiate athletics has had more influence on a program than John McDonnell has had on the men's track and field program at the University of Arkansas," athletic director Jeff Long said. "It is impossible to quantify Coach McDonnell's contributions as a coach, educator and mentor. The recognition and pride he has brought to the University of Arkansas and Razorbacks across the nation and around the world is truly legendary."

His most recent national championship was in 2006 in indoor track; his team won the SEC indoor title in 2007 for his last league championship.

McDonnell's 12 consecutive NCAA indoor track championships, from 1984 to 1995, made up the longest streak of national college titles in any sport.

A-Rod was injured Sunday in New York's 7-1 win at Baltimore. He returned to New York to be examined rather than accompany the team to Chicago, where the Yankees start a series against the White Sox on Tuesday night. Rodriguez was to see a physical therapist later Monday, Yankees spokesman Jason Zillo said.

Rodriguez will be evaluated again Tuesday, according to Zillo, who was unsure whether A-Rod would be available to play in the series opener.

Prado had trouble talking again on Monday after learning he had been selected for induction into the National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame.

"I'm just speechless," said Prado, who grew up in a racing family of 11 children in Peru and began his riding career there at age 16. "I'm shaking like a leaf."

Two-time Derby winning trainer Carl Nafzger, Inside Information, a champion filly in the 1990s, and Manila, a grass specialist who won 12 of his final 15 races in the 1980s, were also among six honorees voted into the hall.

Ismael Valenzuela, a two-time Derby-winning jockey, and the California-bred Ancient Title were selected to the hall by the Historic Review Committee. The Class of 2008 will be inducted Aug. 4.

Gay, a Lexington native who is the defending world champion in the 100 and 200, came from 5 yards back to help his team to a time of 38.51 seconds. A handheld, unofficial clocking had his leg at 8.88 seconds, which includes a running start for the handoff.

Gay hopes to compete in both sprints in the Olympics in China this summer.

After his race at the Mount San Antonio Community College meet, often used for training purposes, Gay said, "Once I got running, I felt relaxed. I had fun."

Gay ran at the Texas Relays earlier this month, and plans to compete in a meet at Carson, Calif., next month.

FEDERER WINS FIRST TOURNEY THIS YEAR

Top-ranked Roger Federer won his first title of the season at the Estoril Open when second-seeded Nikolay Davydenko retired with a leg injury while trailing 7-6 (5), 1-2 Sunday.

It's been eight years since Federer needed five tournaments to get a shot at his first trophy of season.

"It's not the way you want to win a tournament, but that's just the way it goes sometime," Federer said. "It's great to win a title again and to straightaway win my first clay-court tournament of the season gives me great confidence going into Monte Carlo."

The event, which features 19 games at seven schools in six days, will start off with a bang on Monday when No. 9 Paul Dunbar faces No. 24 Lexington Catholic and then Lafayette.

Dunbar will play against Catholic at 5 p.m., then head over to Lafayette to play the surging Generals, who have won three in a row and knocked off several top 25 teams in the past two weeks, at 7:15 p.m.

Two schools will try to snap losing streaks, including Bryan Station, which has lost 12 in a row, and Lexington Christian, which hasn't won a game this season.

Tates Creek also was winless this season before beating Fairdale 5-2 on Friday.

BASEBALL

MLB--Suspended N.Y. Yankees RHP Kyle Farnsworth three games and fined him for throwing behind the neck of Boston OF Manny Ramirez on April 17.

American League

Designated RHP Hideo Nomo for assignment. Recalled up RHP Luke Hochevar from Omaha (PCL).

Asked whether the fans wanted him to put on a show, Miller said, "They probably did. I didn't pay any attention to it."

Miller made three of four shots and scored six points.

The other UK signee, DeAndre Liggins, played as billed. He looked like a pass-first player with the need to improve his jump shot. He finished with three assists, four turnovers and two points.

Ater Majok, the native of Sudan now playing in Australia, filled the void. He gave UK fans something to dream about in helping the Black team beat the Gold team 128-121.

In game one, Reid Kelly (1-0) pitched three scoreless innings of relief and got the win while Curtis Pasma (0-2) was tagged with the loss after giving up the decisive two runs in the sixth inning.

In the second game, Evan Anundsen (2-1) went 61/3, allowing a pair of runs on seven hits, and earned the victory while Carlos Ladeuth (1-3) suffered the loss.

After the split, the Legends are 6-12 and West Virginia is 5-13. Three Power players had multi-hit games in the first contest. Lee Haydel reached all four times up in game two, going 3-for-3 with two runs.

The Power and Legends are off on Monday but will resume their season series on Tuesday night at Applebee's Park in Lexington.

That's what Oklahoma State did after firing Sean Sutton as coach. The Cowboys' athletic director, Mike Holder, knew he wanted to hire Bill Self of Kansas. Yet he still called Newton for advice.

"How'd you hire Rick Pitino?" Holder asked in reference to Newton's 1989 coup in hiring Pitino away from the New York Knicks.

Newton thought Oklahoma State had a chance to hire Self. OSU was Self's alma mater. The school could rightly say it not only wanted him to return home, but needed him to return home.

When Self decided to stay at Kansas, Holder called Newton for advice on what coach to approach. Newton pondered what coach could enjoy small-town life in Stillwater, Okla. What coach had proven ability to rebuild programs. And when Holder said he wanted to hire a young coach who could relate to players, Newton recommended Travis Ford.

Brooks got what he wanted and then some, as the White team held on for a 23-22 win in front of an estimated crowd of 8,500 at Commonwealth Stadium.

Offensive coordinator Joker Phillips and defensive coordinator Steve Brown drafted the two teams earlier in the week, and the rosters appeared to be evenly matched.

"You couldn't have asked for a much more balanced or competitive game," Brooks said. "We couldn't have drawn it up or scripted it better. I was pleased with quite a few things. It's a good testament to where this program has come from to have the depth to put on a game like this and have it look like a reasonable semblance of a football game."

Quarterbacks Curtis Pulley and Mike Hartline both led their offenses to impressive late fourth-quarter drives as they continue their battle to be the No. 1 guy.