Sports Briefs February 6, 2012
Golf
Kyle Stanley rebounded from a devastating loss to win the PGA Phoenix Open in Scottsdale, Ariz., overcoming an eight-stroke deficit Sunday in a comeback as unlikely as his collapse last week at Torrey Pines.
In tears seven days ago in San Diego after blowing a big lead - dropping the final strokes with a triple-bogey 8 on the final hole - and losing a playoff, Stanley took advantage of Spencer Levin's meltdown Sunday to win his first PGA Tour title.
Levin, six strokes ahead entering the round and seven in front after one hole, shot a 75 to finish two strokes behind Stanley.
Football
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said he is disappointed in the quality of last week's Pro Bowl and changes must be considered, perhaps even dropping the game altogether.
Speaking on ESPN Radio, Goodell said this year's Pro Bowl wasn't "the kind of football we want to be demonstrating to our fans, and you heard it from the fans, the fans were actively booing in the stands."
Goodell made his remarks on Sunday, hours before the start of the Super Bowl.
The AFC won the game 59-41.
Tennis
After hitting her first competitive serve in five months just long, Venus Williams relaxed, recoiled and fired off another that was too much for Anastasiya Yakimova.
Williams' comeback was off to a good start that just got better as she teamed with Liezel Huber for a 6-1, 6-2 doubles victory over Yakimova and Darya Kustova that capped a 5-0 Fed Cup shutout for the United States against Belarus in Worcester, Mass.
By blanking Belarus in World Group II, the Americans head to a playoff in April in hopes of playing their way back into the top tier of the Fed Cup, which they were bounced from last year.
Basketball
• TOP 25
Miami 78, No. 7 Duke 74: At Durham, N.C., Reggie Johnson scored five of his career-high 27 points in overtime and Miami (14-7, 5-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) upset the Blue Devils (19-4, 6-2).
No. 9 Michigan St. 64, No. 23 Michigan 54: At East Lansing, Mich., Draymond Green had 14 points and 16 rebounds to lead the Spartans (18-5, 7-3 Big Ten) past the Wolverines (17-7, 7-4).
• NBA
Heat 95, Raptors 89: LeBron James scored 30 points, Dwyane Wade had 25 and host Miami survived a shaky fourth quarter to beat Toronto.
Celtics 98, Grizzlies 80: Kevin Garnett matched his season-high with 24 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead host Boston to its fourth straight win, beating Memphis.
Hockey
Bruins 4, Capitals 1: Tim Thomas made 35 saves, Milan Lucic and Brad Marchand scored first-period goals, and Tyler Seguin and Rich Peverley tallied in the third to lead Boston at Washington.
Rangers 5, Flyerx 2: Artem Anisimov had a goal and two assists, Henrik Lundqvist made 21 saves and host New York beat Philadelphia.
Devils 5, Penguins 2: At Newark, N.J., Ilya Kovalchuk had a goal and two assists, and New Jersey extended its winning streak to four by beating Pittsburgh.
Canadiens 3, Jets 0: Carey Price made 23 saves for his third shutout of the season, Tomas Plekanec had a goal and an assist and host Montreal beat Winnipeg to end a three-game losing streak.
Skiing
Romed Baumann held off a strong challenge from promising Frenchman Alexis Pinturault to win a World Cup super-combined race in Chamonix, France, for his second career victory.
Baumann led Pinturault by a comfortable 3.27 seconds after posting the fastest time in the morning's downhill run on the La Verte des Houches course, and the Austrian held firm in the afternoon slalom session to win by 1.10 seconds.
• Julie Mancuso won a super-G in Garmisch-Partekirchen, Germany, for her first World Cup victory of the season, while fellow American Lindsey Vonn skied off the course and did not finish.
- The Associated Press