Gannon near perfect in Raiders win
DENVER, Nov. 12 (UPI) -- Rich Gannon turned in one of the most amazing performances in the history of the National Football League Monday night, completing a record 21 consecutive passes and throwing for three touchdowns in carrying the Oakland Raiders past the Denver Broncos, 34-10.
Gannon's effort, which included two scoring tosses to 40-year-old Jerry Rice, came in the NFL's 500th Monday night game.
By connecting with his receivers 21 straight times, Gannon broke the single-game record of 20 owned by Cincinnati's Ken Anderson and San Francisco's Steve Young. Gannon, however, barely missed the overall record for consecutive completions. Joe Montana completed 22 in a row in 1987, but he did so over the course of two games.
Rice, meanwhile, became the NFL's all-time combined yardage leader, breaking the record of 21,264 rushing and receiving yards set by the late Walter Payton in a 13-year career that ended in 1987.
The unexpectedly one-sided victory also shook up the AFC West standings. Denver slipped to 6-3 and fell back into a tie for first place in the division with the San Diego Chargers. Oakland, which broke a four-game losing streak, moved within a game of the division lead.
"We had lost four in a row and needed to come up with a big game," Gannon said. "There were a lot of bad things going on around the facility. It was hard to come to work. We needed to rededicate ourselves. We felt we had to be aggressive and take the game to them."
Gannon completed 34 of 38 passes for 352 yards and was successful on 29 of his first 30 throws. Rice, pro football's all-time leading receiver, caught nine passes for 103 yards.
Although Gannon was virtually unstoppable with Oakland's controlled passing attack, the Raiders took early control of the game thanks to a 98-yard interception return for a touchdown by Rod Woodson.
With the Broncos trailing, 3-0, Brian Griese guided Denver to a second and goal at the Oakland four in the first period. But Woodson stepped in front of a pass just past the line of scrimmage intended for Clinton Portis and took off down the right sideline.
Gannon then took over, driving the Raiders 69 yards in the second quarter en route to a 32-yard Sebastian Janikowski field goal. Gannon also delivered touchdown drives of 80, 96 and 72 yards and ended those marches with touchdown passes of six and 34 yards to Rice and 22 yards to Jerry Porter.
Clijsters shocks Serena in WTA final
LOS ANGELES, Nov. 12 (UPI) -- Kim Clijsters stunned Serena Williams Monday night, 7-5, 6-3, to capture the WTA Championships and send a message regarding the invincibility of the world's top player.
Clijsters won in 85 minutes in the final of the $6 million season-ending event at Staples Center.
In defeating Williams for the first time in six meetings, Clijsters handed the No. 1 player just her fifth loss of the season.
The fifth-seeded Clijsters captured her fourth title of the year and ninth of her career. By winning two of her previous three events, she arrived in Los Angeles as one of the hottest players on tour, second only to Williams, and did not drop a set en route to the title.
Clijsters' path was made easier Sunday when Serena's older sister, second seed Venus Williams, retired in their semifinal with a leg injury after dropping the first five games of the opening set.
Bonds voted NL MVP
SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 12 (UPI) -- San Francisco Giants left fielder Barry Bonds, already the only player in major league history with four Most Valuable Player awards, won his fifth Monday.
Bonds, who put behind a history of poor playoff performances and reached the World Series this season for the first time in his career, was a unanimous choice.
The voting, which is done by the Baseball Writers' Association of America, was completed before the postseason.
After setting a major league record with 73 home runs in 2001, Bonds accomplished a pair of feats no less impressive this past season.
At the age of 38, Bonds became the oldest first-time batting champion with a .370 average. He also shattered Ted Williams' record with a .582 on-base percentage. That was 29 points higher than Williams had in 1941 and Bonds broke his own major league record with 198 walks -- 22 more than his 2001 total.
He hit four home runs and batted .471 in the World Series and set a record for walks with 13, including seven intentional. But the Giants fell in seven games to the Anaheim Angels.
St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Albert Pujols was the runner-up, receiving 26 second-place votes and a total of 276 points.
Center fielder Lance Berkman of the Houston Astros, who led the NL with 128 RBI, finished third.
Mavericks improve to 7-0
DALLAS, Nov. 12 (UPI) -- Dirk Nowitzki collected 26 points, 17 rebounds and six steals Monday night as the unbeaten Dallas Mavericks continued the best start in franchise history with an 82-73 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers.
Dallas used offense to win its first six games, averaging 109 points per contest and leading by at least 19 in each one. The Mavericks, however, have maintained they are an improved defensive team this season and proved it against Portland.
Nowitzki was very active on defense and 7-6 center Shawn Bradley had a huge game with 10 points, 18 rebounds and three blocks. The Maverickss won despite shooting a season-low 39.7 percent as they held the Trail Blazers to just 35 percent.
Dallas missed its first eight three-pointers and struggled to get going, falling behind by 13 points midway through the second period. Nowitzki then hit a pair of three-pointers to trigger a 10-0 run as the Mavericks quickly got back into the game, trailing at halftime, 38-34.
Other NBA results: Boston 112, Utah 95; San Antonio 91, Minnesota 75; Golden State 108, Memphis 101.
Andreychuk ties career record in Lightning win
TAMPA, Fla., Nov. 12 (UPI) -- Dave Andreychuk scored his 249th career power-play tally to tie the NHL career record Monday night as the Tampa Bay Lightning built a four-goal lead and held on for a 4-2 victory over the Phoenix Coyotes.
A 21-year veteran, Andreychuk tied Phil Esposito's mark just 17 seconds into the second period. Positioned in a familiar spot at the top of the crease, he deflected a pass from Brad Richards past goaltender Brian Boucher for his fifth goal of the season, extending Tampa Bay's lead to 4-0.
Esposito is a color commentator on radio broadcasts of Lightning home games.
Fredrik Modin, Andre Roy and defenseman Stan Neckar also scored for Tampa Bay, which improved the NHL's best home record to 6
0-1. Nikolai Khabibulin turned aside 34 shots and beat his former team for the second time in as many games.
Tony Amonte ended a seven-game drought and Daniel Briere had the other goal for the Coyotes, who dropped the opener of a three-game road trip.
Other NHL results: Boston 6, Edmonton 1; Atlanta 2, Calgary 1; Florida 2, Chicago 2.
Ohio State leads BCS rankings
COLUMBUS, Ohio, Nov. 12 (UPI) -- Ohio State and Miami grabbed the first two spots in the Bowl Championship Series rankings Monday, putting them in line to meet for the national championship.
Washington State moved into the No. 3 spot and is position to become an unlikely participant in the Fiesta Bowl if either Ohio State or Miami slips up in the final weeks of the season.
Oklahoma's surprising 30-26 loss to Texas A&M last Saturday shuffled the BCS standings -- which are used to determine the schools that will play for at least a share of the national championship in the Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 3.
As a result, Ohio State (11-0) and Miami (9-0) now control their own destiny.
Miami is first and Ohio State second in both the coaches and media polls, but the positions are reversed in the BCS. Ohio State, which survived a scare at Purdue, has 3.41 points under a formula that takes into account those two polls and a series of computer rankings.
"I am proud of what this team has accomplished so far this year," Ohio State Coach Jim Tressel said. "We have won a number of tough football games. This week, we have another very difficult challenge at Illinois. That is where our focus is."
The Hurricanes, who coasted to a 26-3 win at Tennessee, are a close second with 4.10 points.
Washington State (9-1) is third with 8.77 points. The Cougars play Washington on Nov. 23 and UCLA on Dec. 7.
Despite Saturday's loss, Oklahoma (8-1) remains in contention for a Fiesta Bowl berth. It fell only to fourth place with 10.05 points and could impress voters and gain ground by winning all of its remaining contests, including the Big 12 Conference title game.
The Sooners fell all the way to sixth in the latest coaches poll, which wound up dropping them behind Washington State in the BCS.
Texas (9-1) is third in the latest coaches poll but just fifth in the BCS with 11.50 points. Georgia (9-1) is sixth in the BCS, Notre Dame (9-1) seventh and Iowa (10-1) eighth.
Warner to miss another game
ST. LOUIS, Nov. 12 (UPI) -- St. Louis Rams coach Mike Martz announced Monday that Marc Bulger, who passed for a career-high 453 yards and four touchdowns Sunday and has led the team to four straight wins, will start again next week against the Chicago Bears.
Kurt Warner, who suffered a broken pinky Sept. 29 and has been out ever since, will take another week off.
The NFL's Most Valuable Player two of the last three years, Warner underwent surgery on Oct. 1 to repair the broken finger and was expected to be sidelined eight to 10 weeks. He sustained the injury in St. Louis' 13-10 loss to the Dallas Cowboys, a setback that dropped the Rams to 0-4.
The following week, the Rams lost at San Francisco with Jamie Martin as their starting quarterback before Bulger took over and led them to four straight wins.
Bulger threw for more yards Sunday than Warner ever has, completing 36 of 48 for 453 yards and four touchdowns in a 28-24 win over San Diego.
Martz also announced that Rams star running back Marshall Faulk will be listed as questionable for Monday night's game against Chicago with a sprained right ankle and a left heel injury.
Van Exel has knee surgery
DALLAS, Nov. 12 (UPI) -- Dallas Mavericks guard Nick Van Exel underwent arthroscopic surgery Monday to repair damaged and torn cartilage in his right knee and is expected to be sidelined three to six weeks.
The 6-1 Van Exel came off the bench in the Mavericks' first six games this season and averaged 9.5 points and 3.3 assists. He has shot 38 percent from the field, 40 percent from three-point range and 92 percent from the free throw line.
Acquired last February along with center Raef LaFrentz in a multi-player deal, Van Exel has been forced to play a backup role to point guard Steve Nash in Dallas. LaFrentz is also sidelined for at least the next three weeks with a severely sprained ankle.
NHL suspends Rangers player and coach
NEW YORK, Nov. 12 (UPI) -- The NHL announced Monday that New York Rangers left wing Krzysztof Oliwa would be suspended for five games and Coach Bryan Trottier for two games as a result of their actions during a loss to Columbus Saturday night.
Right wing Sandy McCarthy was also fined $1,000.
Oliwa's suspension stems from a cross-checking incident against Grant Marshall of the Blue Jackets at the end of the game. Based on his average annual salary, Oliwa will forfeit $24,305.
The suspension to Trottier is for the lineup of players he sent on the ice -- noted enforcers such as Oliwa and McCarthy -- with 2.5 seconds left in the third period. Both Oliwa and McCarthy initiated altercations immediately following the drop of the puck. McCarthy's fine is for receiving a game misconduct.
The Rangers were also fined $25,000.
Nen to stay in San Francisco
SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 12 (UPI) -- Three days after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his right shoulder, San Francisco Giants closer Robb Nen decided Monday to exercise the $8.6 million option on his contract for the 2003 season.
Nen could have accepted a $2 million buyout and become a free agent. He also has a $9 million contract option for 2004.
The 32-year-old Nen enjoyed one of his best seasons in 2002, helping the Giants reach the World Series, where they lost to the Anaheim Angels in seven games. In 43 games, the righthander went 6-2 with a 2.20 ERA and 43 saves.
All-Stars suffer another loss
FUKUOKA, Japan, Nov. 12 (UPI) -- Alex Cabrera and Hiroki Kokubo each homered and drove in two runs Monday to lead the Japan League All-Stars to their second straight win over the Major League Baseball All-Stars, an 8-2 victory at the Fukuoka Dome.
Cabrera, who played 31 games for the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2000 and tied a Japan League record with 55 home runs this season, hit a home run off Arizona's Miguel Batista in the fifth inning and had an RBI single in the seventh.
Cabrera had a home run and three RBI as the Japan All-Stars took the first game, 8-4, on Sunday. On Saturday, the MLB All-Stars defeated the Yomiuri Giants, 8-1.
Report: Three to surrender in Breeders' Cup betting probe
NEW YORK, Nov. 12 (UPI) -- Three former fraternity brothers accused in a betting scam that has rocked the thoroughbred racing industry apparently will surrender to authorities on Tuesday.
The New York Daily News reported Monday that the three men will turn themselves in at the U.S. Attorney's office in White Plains, N.Y., and be charged with wire fraud conspiracy that resulted in payouts of about $3 million.
Glen DaSilva of New York, Chris Harn of Newark, Del., and Derrick Davis of Baltimore have been the target of a probe that they manipulated a computer system to ensure winning Pick Six tickets in the Breeders' Cup on Oct. 26 at Illinois' Arlington Park.
Ed Hayes, the attorney for DaSilva, told the Daily News that his client will surrender, but said the government has no proof that they did anything wrong.
"They made bets. They won. They got paid. These are very risky bets. They have very high payouts," Hayes told the newspaper. "Can the government show the bets they placed are different from the bets they won? I don't think so."
