Associated Press
OAKLAND, Calif. – Stephen Curry is out with a sprained right ankle again before Golden State’s season has even begun.
Warriors coach Mark Jackson plans to hold the point guard out of the final two preseason games. Curry injured his surgically repaired ankle in Golden State’s 101-97 win at Portland on Friday night.
Curry went to the end of Golden State’s bench after hurting his ankle in the second quarter, but moments later appealed to Jackson to go back in. Jackson said no, Curry headed for the locker room and the team said at halftime that Jackson was sitting Curry for the rest of the night.
Jackson isn’t concerned about Curry’s ankle but sees no reason for the guard to risk an injury in the preseason.The setback for Curry’s comeback is tough enough.
The timing isn’t helping him, either.
The fourth-year point guard is eligible for an extension with the team until Oct. 30 – the night before the season opener at Phoenix – or he will become a free agent next summer. Warriors general manager Bob Myers has said the team plans to pick up Curry’s extension by the deadline.
Curry, one of the NBA’s best shooters when healthy, missed 40 of 66 games last season and has had repeated problems with the ankle throughout his career. The former Davidson star had arthroscopic surgery in April and had surgery to repair a tendon in the ankle in the summer of 2011.NEW YORK – Alabama has run its streak of weeks at No. 1 in The Associated Press college football poll to eight, the longest stay atop the rankings by the Crimson Tide.
Alabama received 59 of 60 first-place votes from the media panel. The Tide has twice previously been No. 1 for seven consecutive weeks – in 1979 when Bear Bryant coached ‘Bama to a national title and in 1980 when the Tide finished sixth.
Oregon is No. 2 for the fifth consecutive week, though the gap between the Ducks and No. 3 Florida, which received the other first-place vote, narrowed after the Gators beat South Carolina 44-11 on Saturday. Alabama had gone three straight weeks as unanimous No. 1.
The rest of the top six was also unchanged after No. 4 Kansas State, No. 5 Notre Dame and No. 6 LSU all won.
South Carolina dropped from ninth to No. 17.LUXEMBOURG — Venus Williams won her first WTA tournament in more than two years, beating Monica Niculescu of Romania 6-2, 6-3 to take the Luxembourg Open title on Sunday.
At 32, Williams won her 44th singles title in a career that includes seven Grand Slams.BOSTON – When John Farrell is announced as the new manager of the Boston Red Sox, he will take over a last-place team reeling from 13 months of player revolt.
He has Bobby Valentine to thank for that.
Valentine didn’t accomplish much in his 10 months as Red Sox manager, but he certainly made it easier for his successor. Instead of taking over for two-time World Series champion Terry Francona, Farrell inherits a team with nowhere to go but up.
Farrell became the change in both clubhouses on Saturday night when he decided to leave Toronto and agreed to a three-year deal to take over in Boston. The Red Sox will send infielder Mike Aviles to the Blue Jays as compensation.