In brief: Allen leads Celtics over Bulls to even series
Ray Allen picked the perfect time to snap out of his shooting slump.
Allen made a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 2 seconds left and finished with 30 points, leading the Boston Celtics a 118-115 win over the Chicago Bulls in Game 2 of their NBA playoff series Monday night in Boston.
Ben Gordon nearly carried Chicago to a 2-0 lead in the best-of-7 series. He scored with 12.3 seconds left to tie it, and had a playoff career-high 42 points. Then Boston set up a play for Allen, who took a pass from Rajon Rondo and connected from the right side.
Allen had just four points on 1-for-12 shooting in Boston’s 105-103 overtime loss on Saturday.
The next two games of the series are scheduled for Chicago on Thursday night and Sunday.
•Spurs even series with Mavericks: Tony Parker had 38 points and eight assists to help San Antonio beat Dallas 105-84 in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series.
Jason Terry finished with 16 points for Dallas, which suffered one of the worst losses in the playoff rivalry.
•Cavaliers’ Brown honored: Mike Brown, who has taken the Cleveland Cavaliers to the postseason in each of his four seasons, was honored as the league’s top coach after leading the Cavaliers to 66 wins, a Central Division title and the No. 1 overall playoff seed following the greatest regular season in club history.
•Memphis’ Evans to test NBA draft: Memphis freshman guard Tyreke Evans has declared himself eligible for the NBA draft.
NHL
Capitals get back in series
Alex Ovechkin went a third game without a goal, but earned two assists for second-seeded Washington , which methodically posted a 4-0 victory over the No. 7 Rangers in New York and got back into the Eastern Conference first-round playoff series.
Behind 33 saves from 20-year-old Simeon Varlamov, the Capitals cut the series deficit to 2-1 – after a pair of home losses – and moved into position to tie the best-of-7 matchup Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden.
•Bruins take 3-0 lead: Michael Ryder scored late in the second period and Tim Thomas made 23 saves to lead Boston to a 4-2 win over the Canadiens in Montreal.
Phil Kessel, Shawn Thornton, Chuck Kobasew also scored for Boston, which increased its lead in the Eastern Conference quarterfinal to 3-0 despite the absence of left wing Milan Lucic, who sat out a one-game league suspension.
•Moss leads Flames over Blackhawks: David Moss scored twice to lead the Flames to a 4-2 victory over Chicago in Calgary, Alberta.
Rene Bourque and Eric Nystrom also scored for the Flames, who trail 2-1 in the best-of-7 Western Conference quarterfinal series. Game 4 is Wednesday night in Calgary.
Football
Byrd in critical condition
Former LSU receiver Demetrius Byrd was in critical but stable condition after a car accident in Miami, and his agent said the NFL prospect was expected to fully recover.
Byrd had scrapes and bruises, but was being held in intensive care for observation, said his junior college coach, Tim Hatten of Pearl River Community College in Mississippi. Hatten had talked with Byrd’s mom, who said her son was alert and talking at the hospital.
•Eagles deny Brown: The Philadelphia Eagles have no intention of trading disgruntled cornerback Sheldon Brown, who says he wants out after the team refused to re-negotiate his contract.
Brown is scheduled to make $2 million this season, the first of four remaining on the extension he signed in 2004. The deal included a $7.5 million signing bonus.
•Jaguars add Holt: Veteran former Rams receiver Torry Holt has agreed to a three-year contract with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
•Los Angeles drops AFL team: Even while on hiatus, the Arena Football League can’t remain intact.
The Los Angeles Avengers dropped out of the indoor league, releasing a statement on its Web site it “has terminated its participation in the Arena Football League.”
The AFL suspended operations for this season, but has said it plans to play next year after a reorganization.
Miscellany
Female skiers make case
Fifteen international female ski jumpers appeared in a Canadian court in Vancouver, British Columbia, seeking a ruling that women be allowed to compete in the event at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics.
Three men’s ski jumping events are planned for February’s Games but none are scheduled for women.
The women say their exclusion by the IOC is a violation of Canadian human rights laws.
•Number of dead horses reaches 21: Magnificent polo ponies, each valued at up to $200,000, stumbled from their trailers and crumpled one by one onto the green grass before the U.S. Open polo match Sunday in Wellington, Fla.
Vets ran out and poured water over the feverish, splayed-out animals. But it was no use. One dead horse. Then another. Then more. And within a day, 21 horses were dead.
State veterinarians were still performing necropsies but suspect the horses died from heart failure brought on by some sort of toxic reaction in their bodies. Possibly tainted feed, vitamins or supplements. Maybe a combination of the three.