Sabine Lisicki cruises into third round of Mercury Insurance Open

Sabine Lisicki blew past Kimiko Date-Krumm to win in straight sets, 6-1, 6-2 in the last singles match of the day at the Mercury Insurance Open.

The twelfth-seeded German simply overpowered Date-Krumm in a match that was never really in question. Lisicki won the vast majority of points on her serve, and punished Date-Krumm’s flat and slow first serve with booming returns. To close the first set, Date-Krumm gave up a 40-0 lead on serve, allowing Lisicki to break her in ad points –- a microcosm of the German player’s dominance.

Lisicki moves on to face American Coco Vandeweghe in the third round Thursday. Vandeweghe will play again in doubles tonight after winning a three-set singles match earlier this afternoon.

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Coco Vandeweghe advances at Mercury Insurance Open

With tennis' big names absent, Andrea Petkovic leads German surge

Martina Hingis mulls another tennis comeback

-- Matt Stevens

Photo: Sabine Lisicki returns a forehand during her match against Greta Arn at the Mercury Insurance Open on Tuesday. Credit: Jeff Gross / Getty Images

Coco Vandeweghe advances at Mercury Insurance Open

San Diego’s Coco Vandeweghe utilized home court advantage to gut out a three-set victory, after losing a tightly contested tiebreaker in the first set.

Her 6-7 (9-7), 6-4, 6-3 win over Olga Savchuck was sloppy at times. The two players combined for 26 double faults and 16 break points. The first set was especially strange as Vandeweghe swept the first four games, only to watch Savchuck take the next five.

“Goodness,” Vandeweghe said, putting her head into her hands when asked about her 14 double faults. “It’s not something I hope to do again.”

Nonetheless, Vandeweghe’s win punches her ticket to the third round where she will play the winner of tonight’s Sabine Lisicki vs. Kimiko Date-Krumm match. It was only her second set of consecutive wins ever at the tour level.

“I definitely got complacent with the 4-0 lead,” Vandeweghe said. “I know better now.” 

RELATED:

With tennis' big names absent, Andrea Petkovic leads German surge

Martina Hingis mulls another tennis comeback

-- Matt Stevens

Photo: Coco Vandeweghe returns a shot during her victory over Olga Savchuck at the Mercury Insurance Open on Wednesday. Credit: Jeff Gross / Getty Images

Shea Weber receives $7.5-million arbitration award

Exhaustion, acrimony and, ultimately, separation. 

Remembering NHL arbitration oh so well ... 

The summer of 2007 sawthe arbitration hearing between the Kings and center Mike Cammalleri.  Afterward, Kings General Manager Dean Lombardi told me that he "survived." Not only did the Kings survive, but they prevailed when the arbitrator awarded Cammalleri a two-year, $6.7-million contract.

Relationships rarely survive the rugged arbitration process, and this one was not an exception -- Cammalleri ended up getting dispatched to Calgary in a three-way deal with the Flames and Ducks not quite a year after his arbitration case. 

Now, can the Nashville Predators and defenseman Shea Weber avoid an eventual parting after Weber was awarded $7.5 million on Wednesday by an arbitrator for the upcoming season, an arbitration record in the NHL? Previously, the high was John LeClair's $7 million in 2000.

"As they say: Well, why didn't you get it done? We just couldn't quite agree on the term, the length or the structure. We just didn't get it done," said Nashville GM David Poile on a conference call with Weber and reporters.

UCLA basketball: Tickets for Honda Center games go on sale Monday

Tickets for the four UCLA men's basketball games at the Honda Center next season will go on sale at 10 a.m. Monday. They can be purchased at Ticketmaster.com, Ticketmaster retail locations, the UCLA and Honda Center box offices or by calling (800) 745-3000.

The Bruins will play Penn on Dec. 10, UC Davis on Dec. 17, Arizona on Jan. 5 and Arizona State on Jan. 7. Single-game tickets as well as group packages are available.

UCLA will play 14 games at the Sports Arena in addition to the four at Honda Center while Pauley Pavilion undergoes renovations. The Bruins will also play an exhibition at Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario.

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Ex-Occidental College quarterback Andy Collins dies at 27

Chris Dufresne: Fill out the calendar and dust off the couch for college football

-- Ben Bolch

Photo: UCLA Coach Ben Howland celebrates with his players during an NCAA tournament game against Michigan State in March. Credit: Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times

Brett Simpson is eliminated at Nike U.S. Open of Surfing

When the horn sounded, Brett Simpson pounded his fist against his surfboard. His time was up. He had become yet another local legend who failed to three-peat this year.

The two-time defending champion at the Nike U.S. Open of Surfing had placed third in his heat and was eliminated Wednesday at the Huntington Beach competition.

Simpson finished with 10.24 points, trailing first-place Thiago Camarao of Brazil (13.17) and second-place John John Florence of Hawaii (12.26). The top two finishers in each heat advance to the next round.

"I had opportunities, you know, I made a mistake on a decent wave that I was setting up good and I freaking barreled," Simpson said. "Out there right now, you don't get a ton of opportunities, and when you get them, you've got to make them count. I didn't do that."

Fans boo Chad Henne, chant for Kyle Orton at Dolphins practice

Some Miami Dolphins fans are not happy with quarterback Chad Henne. And Dolphins Coach Tony Sparano is not happy with those fans.

Toward the end of Monday's practice, Henne threw a couple of errant passes. Fans responded first by booing, then by chanting, "We want Orton!" in reference to the Dolphins' recent attempt to trade for Denver Broncos quarterback Kyle Orton.

All fans received free admission to Monday night's practice as a goodwill gesture following the NFL lockout, and Sparano was displeased with the way some of them chose to express themselves.

"It really makes me sick," Sparano said Wednesday. "When people come to the stadium like that in one of those kind of events to support the Miami Dolphins, that's what we should be thinking about."

One person the coach doesn't think it affected, though, is Henne.

"I'm not worried about how it affects anybody," Sparano said. "We're all big boys here."

Receiver Brian Hartline added of Henne, who threw 19 interceptions and was benched for a stretch last year: "No one is doubting him inside the building, only outside the building."

ALSO:

Ronnie Brown signs with Philadelphia Eagles

Which NFL team has improved itself the most in the short off-season?

-- Chuck Schilken

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Photo: Chad Henne practices at the Dolphins training facility. Credit: Steve Mitchell / US Presswire

UCLA football: CB Anthony Jefferson could return in October

UCLA cornerback Anthony Jefferson, who underwent back surgery Monday, could return in time for the Oct. 1 game against Stanford, according to a person familiar with the situation but who is not authorized to talk about injuries.

Jefferson, a redshirt freshman, was suffering from back pain caused by a herniated disk. He is expected to begin rehabilitation in two weeks and will miss at least the first month of the season.

The Bruins are thin at cornerback, with Andrew Abbott being the only scholarship player with game experience behind starters Aaron Hester and Sheldon Price. Brandon Sermons, a redshirt freshman who missed last season with a broken leg, is behind Abbott on the depth chart.

Jefferson played three games last season before suffering a broken foot. He was able to use his redshirt season.

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UCLA football: Anthony Jefferson to have minor surgery

T.J. Simers: He, and Tom Lasorda, are in Rick Neuheisel's corner

-- Chris Foster

Keyshawn Johnson, Randy Johnson to join USC Hall of Fame

Former football stars Keyshawn Johnson, Tony Boselli, Clarence Davis and Adrian Young are among 16 honorees who will be inducted into USC's Athletic Hall of Fame as part of the 2012 class, the school announced Wednesday.

Other inductees: Art Bartner (Trojan Marching Band), Lindsay Benko (swimming), Steve Bisheff (media), Barbara Hallquist (tennis), Barbara Hedges (athletics administration), Bob Hughes (water polo/swimming), Bryan Ivie (volleyball), Randy Johnson (baseball), Jill McGill (golf), Tina Thompson (basketball), Forrest Twogood (basketball) and Quincy Watts (track and field).

"This is an outstanding group of Trojan greats -- Olympians, All-Americans, national champions and sports icons -- who have played an important role in USC’s athletic history," USC Athletic Director Pat Haden said in a statement. "They’ll join our first nine classes of Hall of Famers to form a real who’s who in USC sports."

The inductees will be honored at a dinner on June 12, 2012, at USC’s Galen Center.

ALSO:

USC's Lane Kiffin gets the talk started

Pat Haden's first year rocky; road ahead looks better

-- Gary Klein

Photo: Keyshawn Johnson in 1995. Credit: Eric Draper / Associated Press

MLB investigates Alex Rodriguez for alleged high-stakes gambling

Alex Rodriguez is the subject of a Major League Baseball investigation for his alleged participation in high-stakes underground poker games, the league said Wednesday.

The New York Yankees third baseman is said to have played at least twice -- including in one game that involved several high-profile actors, cocaine and hundreds of thousands of dollars at the Beverly Hills mansion of a record executive -- according to reports published by multiple sources.

A story published on RadarOnline.com said that Rodriguez “tried to distance himself from the game” when a fight almost broke out.

“We're talking to people involved in the investigation and we're taking this very seriously,” an MLB executive told ESPN New York. “Because he had been warned about this before, I would say a possible suspension would be very much in play.”

In 2005 the Yankees and Commissioner Bud Selig warned Rodriguez about gambling in underground poker clubs, saying dealings with people who might also bet on baseball games could result in a lifetime ban from baseball.

“We take this very seriously and have been investigating this matter since the initial allegation,” the league said in a statement. “As part of the investigation, the Commissioner's Office will interview Mr. Rodriguez.”

Rodriguez is currently recovering from knee surgery last month and had been expected to be able to rejoin the team in a couple of weeks.

ALSO:

Clayton Kershaw named NL Player of the Month

Bill Plaschke: Jered Weaver was wrong to retaliate

-- Chuck Schilken

The Sports Xchange and Reuters contributed to this report.

Photo: Alex Rodriguez. Credit: Jason Miller / Getty Images

Maria Kirilenko withdraws from Mercury Insurance Open

In what is becoming a daily routine, another top player withdrew from the Mercury Insurance Open on Wednesday afternoon.
 
Eleventh-seeded Maria Kirilenko said she would exit due to a left hip injury. No. 2 Kim Clijsters, Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova, top-ranked American Bethanie Mattek-Sands and last year’s champion, Svetlana Kuznetsova, all withdrew before the tournament began.
 
Kirilenko had beaten Canadian Rebecca Marino in straight sets in the first round, but her departure allows Austrian Tamira Paszek to advance to the third round in a walkover. That’s good news for American Sloane Stephens, who won Wednesday morning and can advance to her first tour quarterfinal if she can defeat Paszek. Kirilenko is ranked 26th in the world, Paszek 36th. 

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Sloane Stephens upsets Julia Goerges

Martina Hingis mulls another tennis comeback

Tennis event at La Costa loses several marquee players

-- Matt Stevens

Photo: Maria Kirilenko. Credit: Jeff Gross / Getty Images

Giants Sign Another Andrews for Offensive Line

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — The Giants were not without the services of one of the N.F.L.’s Andrews brothers for long.

One week after releasing the reserve tackle Shawn Andrews in a salary cap-related move, the Giants signed his younger brother Stacy to a contract on Wednesday.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Andrews was at Giants headquarters meeting with the team on Wednesday afternoon.

Stacy Andrews, who is 18 months older than Shawn, played for the Bengals from 2004 through 2008, starting at right tackle in his final two seasons. His Bengals career ended when he tore an anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee in Week 16 of 2008.

Last year, he started 12 games at right guard for the Seahawks. He is expected to provide depth on an offensive line that lost both his younger brother and the starters Shaun O’Hara and Rich Seubert in a salary purge.

He is not expected to compete at left tackle, a position he has never played.

This is not the first time that Andrews has followed in his brother’s footsteps. Andrews signed with the Eagles in 2009, where Shawn Andrews was a Pro Bowl-caliber guard. The brothers never played together, however; Shawn was injured for the whole season, and Stacy was benched after two games due to the lingering effects of his knee injury.

Sloane Stephens upsets Julia Goerges at Mercury Insurance Open

 

American teenager Sloane Stephens completed one of the first major upsets at the Mercury Insurance Open on Wednesday morning with a 6-3, 7-5 victory over seventh-seeded Julia Goerges. 
 
With the win, the 18-year-old Stephens won consecutive matches in the main draw of a WTA event for the first time in her career and got her first win against a top-20 player.
 
Goerges continues to struggle, having lost her first match at four of her last five tournaments. The German showed several signs of strain Wednesday, complaining about numerous calls and appearing frustrated by Stephens' effective defensive slices.
 
Stephens managed to break Goerges twice in the first set, and after the two players traded breaks in the second, Stephens broke to go up 6-5. Stephens won on double-match point when Goerges pulled a forehand wide. 

RELATED:

Agnieska Radwanska advances at Mercury Open

Martina Hingis mulls another tennis comeback

Tennis event at La Costa loses several marquee players

-- Matt Stevens

Photo: Sloane Stephens on her way to victory Wednesday. Credit: Jeff Gross / Getty Images.

How will Tiger Woods do in his return to golf this week?

Writers from around the Tribune Co. discuss Tiger Woods, who is returning to competitive golf this week at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational. Check back throughout the day for more responses and weigh in with a comment of your own.

Barry Stavro, Los Angeles Times

Better than last year, when he was 18-over-par for the tournament and finished 78th in the 81-player field.

Why an improvement this time?

As miserable as 2011 has been for Woods, most fans have forgotten that he almost won the Masters in April –- though his putter is no longer a magic wand in his hands.

Granted, Woods is rusty, again. But like August National, Woods is comfortable on the Firestone course -- he’s won the Bridgestone Invitational seven times -- and this week’s tournament is a small field and there’s no cut so he’ll get in four rounds.

My guess is Woods won’t embarrass himself, and that he’ll finish in the top 15.

Kevin Durant thrills fans at New York summer tournament [Video]

Kevin Durant has been thrilling basketball fans in New York City this week with some spectacular play as part of the Pro City summer tournament.

The Oklahoma City Thunder star scored 66 points at Harlem's Rucker Park on Monday night and followed with a 41-point effort Tuesday night in a packed gym at Baruch College in Manhattan (Chicago Bulls guard John Lucas III scored 60 points for the opposing team).

Check out the video highlights above from Monday and Tuesday -- it's hard not to get caught up in the excitement of the crowd.

ALSO:

NBA goes on the offense against players

Lamar Odom dealing with death all over again

-- Chuck Schilken

The Sports Xchange contributed to this report.

Danica Patrick may switch to NASCAR -- and still race in Indy 500

Danica Patrick's days as an IndyCar driver may not be coming to a complete end after all. Even if she becomes a full-time NASCAR driver as expected, she may still take part in the biggest IndyCar race of them all.

Patrick reportedly is in the final stages of a deal to run a full-time Nationwide Series schedule as a part of JR Motorsports as well as compete in limited Sprint Cup Series races for the team owned by Tony Stewart. Those talks include a plan to allow her to continue racing in the Indianapolis 500, the Associated Press reported, citing an unnamed source.

JR Motorsports co-owner Kelley Earnhardt has said it would be tough for Patrick to compete for a Nationwide championship if she runs in the Indianapolis 500, which requires drivers to spend much of May at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. NASCAR had three Nationwide races during that span this year.

Patrick, who finished third at the Indianapolis 500 in 2009, has one career IndyCar victory and is ranked 11th in the series standings. She is winless in 19 career Nationwide races, but JR Motorsports co-owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. says she's "way ahead of the curve" as a NASCAR driver.

"I would like for her to run full time, and I'm sure she is considering that, and I think she would enjoy it,” Earnhardt said at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. "I feel confident that she's content where she is and happy with what we're doing. I think things are looking positive for us to put something together."

Stewart has also expressed interest in working with Patrick in the Sprint Cup Series.

"Anybody that's got a Cup team that would have the availability would jump at the chance to do something with her," Stewart said in May. "You would be crazy not to entertain an offer like that and an opportunity for her to drive a race car for you."

RELATED:

Photos: Danica Patrick through the years

NASCAR Chase for the Cup playoff could include surprising names

-- Chuck Schilken

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Photo: Danica Patrick. Credit: Nick Laham / Getty Images

Bill Plaschke: Jered Weaver was wrong

In speaking to reporters about his six-game suspension, Angel pitcher Jered Weaver actually tried to rationalize the act of throwing at somebody’s head because somebody else had stared too long at a home run.

"There are just some things that kind of cross the line. ... I thought that was one of those things," he said.

You know what crosses the line? The Angels' best pitcher risking his team’s playoff chances by citing one of those absurd unwritten baseball rules as an excuse to throw a tantrum and endanger a life.

Jered Weaver doesn’t want the Detroit Tigers’ Carlos Guillen to showboat his home run trot last weekend? Then he shouldn’t have thrown that fat home run pitch. For Weaver to then throw at the head of Alex Avila as payback -– when we all know that Weaver was just upset at losing his pitching duel with Cy Young contender Justin Verlander -– was foolishly out of character for the calmest of pitchers.

Weaver did not hit a batter last season, and has hit just one this season. This is not how he rolls. This is not how he throws. He controls the ball. If the Angels hope to catch the Texas Rangers in the American League West, he must now control himself.

This stunt will cost him one start, and if you don’t think one start by a guy with a 14-5 record and 1.88 ERA doesn’t mean much, well, the Angels trail the Rangers by one game. The Angels have an advantageous September schedule that includes just seven of 26 games against teams with winning records, and will end the season with six home games, the final three against the Rangers.

The Angels can steal this title, but they can’t do it without their ace. Instead of throwing at somebody else’s head, Jered Weaver needs to take care of his own.

RELATED:

Weaver appeals his suspension

Tempers flare in Angels' 3-2 loss to Tigers

Bill Dwyre: Derek Jeter is a player to be celebrated

--Bill Plaschke

Photo: Jered Weaver pitches early in the game against the Tigers. Credit: Jeff Kowalsky / European Pressphoto Agency

 

 

Former Trojan Mike Patterson OK after collapsing at Eagles camp

Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle Mike Patterson is doing much better after a scary morning at training camp.

The former USC Trojan suffered a seizure between plays during Wednesday's morning practice but is now alert, stable and joking at a hospital, team trainer Rick Burkholder said.

“He's absolutely alert, stable, totally communicating with everybody, even joking a little bit,” Burkholder said. “We won't speculate what happened to him, other than he had a seizure. It could be anything. We don't even want to speculate what might have happened.”

The Eagles' first-round pick from 2005 dropped to the ground and began shaking violently between plays during practice at Lehigh University in Pennsylvania. He was immediately tended to by Burkholder and his staff, with assistance from rookie offensive lineman Danny Watkins, a trained firefighter.

Teammates kneeled and held hands as Patterson was placed on a stretcher and lifted into the ambulance. Practice resumed after about 15 minutes.

Burkholder estimated the seizure lasted about four minutes and said Patterson lost consciousness at one point while he was on the ground. He added that Patterson was undergoing further tests at Lehigh Valley Hospital.

ALSO:

Matt Leinart won't play for Seahawks after all

Video: Gary Klein discusses USC, Matt Barkley

-- Chuck Schilken

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Top photo: Philadelphia Eagles players and coaches gather around defensive tackle Mike Patterson as he is put into an ambulance after he had a seizure during a training camp practice at Lehigh University on Wednesday. Credit: Alex Brando / Associated Press

Bottom photo: Mike Patterson. Credit: Associated Press