Pitt takes top spot in basketball rankings
MCLEAN, Va., Jan. 5 (UPI) -- Undefeated Pittsburgh sat atop the ESPN/USA Today men's basketball rankings Monday, with North Carolina falling from first to third after its first loss.
The 14-0 Panthers, who were ranked third last week, received first-place votes of 30 of the 31 coaches, while the 13-1 Tar Heels received one.
Duke, which was fifth a week ago, moved up to No. 2 with a 12-1 mark. Wake Forest (13-0) moved up two places to No. 4 and Connecticut (12-1), ranked second last week, fell all the way to No. 5.
Oklahoma (13-1) is No. 6 this week, while Texas (11-2) and UCLA (12-2) are tied at No. 7, followed by Syracuse (14-1) and Georgetown (14-1).
The next 10 are Clemson (14-0), Michigan State (11-2), Notre Dame (10-3), Purdue (11-3), Marquette (13-2), Arizona State (12-2), Villanova (12-2), Xavier (11-2), Minnesota (13-1) and Butler (12-1).
Minnesota Twins owner Carl Pohlad dies
MINNEAPOLIS, Jan. 5 (UPI) -- Billionaire Carl Pohlad, who owned the Minnesota Twins for a quarter century, died Monday at age 93 at his Edina, Minn., home, a Twins executive reported.
Twins Sports Inc. President Jerry Bell made the announcement.
One of Pohlad's sons, Jim, who is chief executive officer of Twins Sports, said last March the family intends to own the franchise far into the future.
Pohlad served in the U.S. Army during World War II. He was an infantryman in Europe, earning three purple hearts and two bronze stars.
He came to Minneapolis in 1949 to run Marquette Bank after he and investment partners had bought Bank Shares Inc., the firm that owned Marquette. Marquette Bank grew after the war and in 1955, when an investment partner died, Pohlad became chief executive officer and president of the bank, which later became U.S. Bancorp.
The late Calvin Griffith sold the Twins to Pohlad in 1984. Under Pohlad's ownership the Twins won world championships in 1987 and 1991.
Angels, Scioscia agree to five-year deal
ANAHEIM, Calif., Jan. 5 (UPI) -- The Los Angeles Angels said Monday they have agreed to a contract extension with Manager Mike Scioscia that will keep him with the club through the 2014 season.
The team said it agreed in principle to a new deal but did not disclose terms, the Los Angeles Times reported. General Manager Tony Reagins said the extension would ensure that Scioscia -- the longest-tenured manager in the American League -- "will be around for a long, long time."
Scioscia -- who is also the longest-tenured and most successful manager in Angels' franchise history -- is believed to earn $1.75 million a year under his current contract, which ran through 2009 with a club option for 2010, the Times said.
Under Scioscia, the Angels won their first World Series title in 2002 and have won the American League West title in four of the last five seasons. They reached the American League Championship Series in 2005, but fell to the Boston Red Sox in AL playoff series in 2004, 2007 and 2008.
The Angels have won 803 games and lost 655, a winning percentage of .551, since Scioscia took the helm in 2000.
Chavis named LSU's defensive coordinator
BATON ROUGE, La., Jan. 5 (UPI) -- John Chavis, a 31-year coaching veteran, was named Monday as defensive coordinator for the Louisiana State University Tigers.
Chavis, 52, began his coaching career in 1979 as a graduate assistant at Tennessee. After a year he moved to Alabama A&M to serve as the defensive line coach from 1980-1983. Chavis then went to Alabama State for two years, serving as the defensive coordinator before going back to Alabama A&M from 1986-1988.
Chavis returned to Tennessee in 1989 and served as the defensive line and linebackers coach. He held that position until he was promoted to defensive coordinator in 1995.
Over Chavis' 14 seasons as the Vols' defensive coordinator, Tennessee's defense ranked in the top four in the SEC in total defense 10 times. The Vols have played in 12 bowl games since 1995, including three appearances in BCS bowl games.
