Sports Briefs December 13, 2010
Baseball
The St. Louis Cardinals traded shortstop Brendan Ryan to the Seattle Mariners for minor league right-hander Maikel Cleto on Sunday.
Ryan hit .223 with a poor .279 on-base percentage and 11 steals in just fewer than 500 plate appearances last season. It was a big drop-off offensively after he batted .292 in 2009, and despite playing well defensively Ryan fell out of favor with the team.
In Cleto the Cardinals get a 21-year-old pitcher who can touch 100 mph. He spent last season in the Class-A California League.
Dustin Johnson and Ian Poulter won the Shark Shootout Sunday in Naples, Fla., shooting a 13-under 59 in the scramble format to beat Darren Clarke and Graeme McDowell by two shots.
Johnson and Poulter grabbed the lead with birdies on their first four holes and never looked back, finishing at 30-under 186 at Tiburon Golf Club. Clarke and McDowell (59) never got closer than two strokes.
The two teams passed second-round co-leaders Jerry Kelly and Steve Stricker (64), and Fred Funk and Kenny Perry (66).
Kelly and Stricker, the defending champions, tied for third at 26 under with Chris DiMarco and Anthony Kim (61).
Soccer
Scott Caldwell scored in the 78th minute to help Akron beat top-ranked Louisville 1-0 in the NCAA Division I men's soccer championship game in Santa Barbara, Calif.
Knicks 129, Nuggets 125: Amare Stoudemire scored 24 of his 30 points in the second half and host New York beat Denver.
76ers 88, Hornets 70: Lou Williams finished with 17 points to help host Philadelphia over New Orleans.
Lakers 99, Nets 92: At Newark, N.J., Kobe Bryant scored 25 of his 32 points in the second half to lead Los Angeles past New Jersey.
Lamar Odom had five of his 22 points in the late spurt and Pau Gasol had the other three in capping a 15-point, 11-rebound effort that led the Lakers to their sixth straight win over New Jersey.
Spurs 95, Trail Blazers 78: George Hill scored 22 points to lead host San Antonio over Portland.
Thunder 106, Cavaliers 77: Kevin Durant scored 25 points, and Jeff Green and James Harden added 19 apiece as host Oklahoma City beat Cleveland.
Magic 94, Clippers 85: Dwight Howard scored 22 points to lead Orlando past Los Angeles.
Rangers 7, Capitals 0: Artem Anisimov scored the first of three Rangers goals during a 3-minute span early in the second period, and host New York routed Washington.
Canucks 2, Oilers 1: Daniel Sedin assisted on both goals in visiting Vancouver's win over Edmonton.
Ducks 6, Wild 2: Corey Perry had a hat trick in host Anaheim's win over Minnesota.
Top 25 Men
No. 2 Ohio St. 85, W. Carolina 60: At Columbus, Ohio, Jared Sullinger scored 17 points and Ohio State (8-0) came out of the blocks fast to beat turnover-prone Western Carolina (4-8).
No. 9 Georgetown 89, Appalachian St. 60: At Washington, D.C., Jason Clark scored 15 points and No. 9 Georgetown (9-1) cruised past Appalachian State (3-4).
No. 12 Villanova 84, La Salle 81: At Philadelphia, Maalik Wayns scored 19 points, including the go-ahead layup with 1:09 left and Villanova (8-1) escaped with a victory over La Salle (6-4).
No. 16 Illinois 86, N. Colorado 76: At Champaign, Ill., Mike Tisdale and D.J. Richardson scored 14 points each to lead Illinois (10-1) past Northern Colorado (4-4).
Skiing
Marcel Hirscher claimed a third World Cup win, edging fellow Austrian Benjamin Raich by 0.31 seconds in a challenging slalom in Val d'Isere, France.
• Tessa Worley of France won women's World Cup giant slalom in St. Moritz, Switzerland, on the Corviglia course for her second straight victory, while Lindsey Vonn placed seventh to move up in the overall standings.
- The Associated Press