In brief: Paul returns; Hornets defeat Mavericks
NBA: Chris Paul played for the first time in 25 games, and Marcus Thornton scored 28 points to help the Hornets to a 115-99 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Monday night at New Orleans.
Returning from a left knee injury, Paul was limited to 21 minutes and had 11 points.
David West had 25 points and 10 assists and Morris Peterson had a season-high 20 points for the Hornets.
•Warriors announce they’re for sale: The Golden State Warriors are for sale – and Oracle Corp. CEO Larry Ellison has made it known he wants to buy the team.
In January, Ellison sat courtside to watch the Warriors play LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the building boasting his company’s name – Oracle Arena.
Ellison already owns BMW Oracle Racing, the American sailing syndicate that won the America’s Cup off Valencia, Spain, last month.
•Battier out at least 10 days: Houston forward Shane Battier missed the Rockets’ game on Monday against Chicago and is expected to be sidelined at least 10 days with a sprained left knee.
Battier injured his knee in the second quarter of Sunday’s victory over New York.
James leads Rhode Island over Nevada
College men: Delroy James scored a career-high 34 points and Rhode Island held off Nevada 85-83 Monday in the second round of the National Invitation Tournament at Kingston, R.I.
In other NIT games, Virginia Tech downed Connecticut 65-63, Dayton beat Cincinnati 81-66 and Illinois defeated Kent State 75-58.
•Penders steps down at Houston: Tom Penders resigned as coach at Houston, ending a six-year tenure that saw the Cougars’ play in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1992.
The Cougars lost to Maryland 89-77 in the first round in Spokane.
The 64-year-old Penders became just the eighth coach to take four different schools to the NCAA tournament. He also led George Washington, Rhode Island and Texas there.
•NCAA rejects Memphis’ final appeal: Memphis must vacate its men’s basketball season from 2007-08 after the NCAA rejected its final appeal.
The NCAA announced that its Infractions Appeal Committee ruled against Memphis, which was found to use an ineligible player, believed to be Derrick Rose. The Tigers lost in overtime to Kansas in the national title game that season.
Red Wings win in finals rematch
NHL: Henrik Zetterberg scored his second goal early in the third period and had an assist, lifting the Detroit Red Wings to a 3-1 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins at Detroit in a rematch of last June’s Stanley Cup Finals, won by Pittsburgh in seven games.
Dolphins’ Brown charged with DUI
NFL: Miami Dolphins running back Ronnie Brown, who had been in the suburban Atlanta area to help celebrate his parents’ anniversary, was arrested on a charge of driving under the influence of alcohol and released from jail a few hours later, officials said.
The 28-year-old fifth-year pro was arrested at 4:29 a.m. Saturday, Marietta Police Officer Jennifer Murphy said. Marietta is about 15 miles northwest of Atlanta.
•Goodell plans to meet with Roethlisberger: NFL commissioner Roger Goodell plans to meet with Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger about the star’s off-field problems.
Goodell already has spoken with team owners about Roethlisberger, who is accused of assaulting a 20-year-old college student in a Georgia nightclub on March 5. Roethlisberger’s attorney says the quarterback committed no crime.