Associated Press
DETROIT ó The Detroit Titans are renaming their court after ESPN commentator Dick Vitale, who used to be a coach and athletic director at the school.
Vitale will be honored when the Titans host St. Johnís on Dec. 5 at Calihan Hall. Vitale will celebrate his 32nd anniversary of calling games for ESPN that day.
Athletic director Keri Gaither says: ěDick Vitale Court at Calihan Hall will serve as a perpetual and lasting tribute to not only Dickís time at Detroit but also his significant contributions to the sport over several decades.î
Vitale coached at the school from 1973-77, going 78-30. In April 1977, he was named athletic director, and the following year he became coach of the Detroit Pistons.
BASEBALL
WASHINGTON ó Nationals first baseman Adam LaRoche will have season-ending surgery Thursday on a torn labrum in his left shoulder.
HOUSTON ó The Astros fired pitching coach Brad Arnsberg on Tuesday and replaced him on an interim basis with former Houston pitcher Doug Brocail.
The Astros, who have the worst record in baseball at 25-42, cited philosophical differences in announcing the change.
TORONTO ó Baltimore Orioles pitching coach Mark Connor resigned for personal reasons Tuesday and was replaced by bullpen coach Rick Adair.
CYCLING
LOS ANGELES ó The FBI has contacted a Colorado restaurant to get surveillance tapes of a conversation between seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong and former teammate Tyler Hamilton over the weekend.
Armstrong and Hamilton ran into each other at a restaurant in Aspen on Saturday night, a few weeks after Hamilton went on ě60 Minutesî and accused Armstrong of doping and encouraging his teammates to use performance-enhancing drugs as well.
Hamilton attorney Chris Manderson said his client was rattled by some of Armstrongís comments. ěIt was aggressive and intimidating and we thought it should be reported to federal investigators,î Manderson told The Associated Press.
TENNIS
EASTBOURNE, England ó Playing tennis again after recovering from blood clots in her lungs and two foot operations, Serena Williams returned after nearly a year off the WTA Tour, regrouped after a slow start, and beat Bulgariaís Tsvetana Pironkova 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 Tuesday in the first round of a Wimbledon warmup.
Williams hadnít played since July after cutting her foot on glass at a restaurant in Germany. She had surgery twice and later was diagnosed with pulmonary embolisms.
HOCKEY
VANCOUVER, British Columbia ó Canucks forward Mason Raymond will be out three to four months with a fractured vertebrae after being checked into the boards during Game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals.
The team said in a statement Tuesday that Raymond sustained a ěvertebrae compression fractureî on Monday night. Defenseman Johnny Boychuk rode him into the boards 20 seconds into Bostonís 5-2 victory that forced a decisive Game 7 Wednesday night in Vancouver.
Raymond lay on the ice for several minutes before being helped off and taken to the hospital on a stretcher. No penalty was called on the play.
SOCCER
KANSAS CITY, Kan. ó Jozy Altidore scored in the ninth minute off an assist from Michael Bradley, and the United States hung on to beat Guadeloupe 1-0 on Tuesday night to reach the quarterfinals of the Gold Cup.
The U.S. finished second in Group C with six points, and will face Group B winner Jamaica in the quarterfinals.