Magic rally to win reunion with Howard
NBA: Arron Afflalo scored 30 points, Glen Davis added 23 points and 12 rebounds, and the Orlando Magic beat Dwight Howard in their first game against their longtime center, stunning the Lakers 113-103 on Sunday night in Los Angeles.
Howard had 21 points and 15 rebounds against his former team, but the rebuilding Magic rallied impressively for a 40-point fourth quarter for just their fourth win in 14 games, snapping a three-game skid.
Orlando did it partly by intentionally fouling Howard, who went 9 for 21 at the line – including 7 for 14 in the fourth quarter.
Kobe Bryant scored 34 points for the Lakers, who dropped to 3-4 under new coach Mike D’Antoni.
• Knicks stay unbeaten at home: Carmelo Anthony scored 34 points as the New York Knicks won their third straight game and remained unbeaten at home with a 106-99 victory over the Phoenix Suns.
Raymond Felton added 23 points and seven assists for the Knicks, who are 7-0 at Madison Square Garden and 12-4 overall, a half-game behind Miami for the best record in the Eastern Conference.
Tyson Chandler finished with 15 points and 13 rebounds for the Knicks.
Saint Louis wins first since Majerus death
Men’s basketball: Saint Louis (4-3) earned a 62-49 home win over Valparaiso (5-2) in its first game since former coach Rick Majerus died of heart failure.
Majerus, 64, passed away at a Los Angeles hospital on Saturday. He guided the Billikens to their first NCAA tournament appearance in 12 years last season.
Majerus, who had a history of heart problems, took a leave of absence due to health issues in August. The school announced last month that he would not return.
• Boise State routs Seattle: Anthony Drmic scored 25 points, matching his season high, and visiting Boise State won 87-64 over Seattle (2-3).
The Broncos (6-1) hit 15 3-pointers, led by Drmic’s five and Mikey Thompson’s 4-for-4 performance. The Broncos made 54 percent from behind the arc and 53 percent overall.
• Wisconsin hands California first loss of season: Wisconsin used first-half runs of 14-0 and 12-0 to take control and put together an 11-0 run early in the second half as it cruised past previously unbeaten California 81-56 in Madison, Wis.
Four Wisconsin players scored in double digits. Ben Brust led the Badgers (5-3) with a season-high 22 points.
Allen Crabbe had 25 for the Bears (6-1).
No. 4 Duke handles No. 10 California
Women’s basketball: Tricia Liston scored 22 points to help lift No. 4 Duke over No. 10 California 77-63.
Chelsea Gray added 13 points for the Blue Devils (6-0), who built a big lead early with a 22-2 run in the first half. Elizabeth Williams had 12 points as Duke won for the 65th time in its last 67 games in Durham, N.C.
Brittany Boyd scored 23 of her 28 points in the second half to lead California (6-1).
• Lady Vols upend Tar Heels: Meighan Simmons scored a career-high 33 points and exceeded the 1,000-point mark for her career as No. 16 Tennessee (6-1) trounced No. 22 North Carolina (7-1) 102-57 in Knoxville, Tenn., for its sixth consecutive victory.
Simmons scored her 1,000th career point by sinking a pair of free throws with 11:44 left in the first half, becoming the 37th Lady Vol to reach that plateau.
UNC women top Penn St. for 21st title
Soccer: North Carolina had three goals in the second half to beat Penn State 4-1 and win its 21st women’s soccer NCAA championship in San Diego.
The Tar Heels (15-5-3) were making their 26th appearance in the final four College Cup.
Penn State (21-4-2) was playing in its first women’s soccer championship game.
UNC outshot Penn State, 24-12 for the game, including 15-8 in the second half.
Vonn records sweep at Lake Louise
Skiing: Lindsey Vonn completed a sweep of World Cup races at Lake Louise, Alberta, for the second straight year.
Vonn won Sunday’s super-G in a time of 1 minute, 22.82 seconds. She also won two downhill races over the weekend for the hat trick.
American teammate Julia Mancuso was second in the super-G in 1:23.25, while Anna Fenninger of Austria was third in 1:23.27.
• Ligety captures giant slalom win: Ted Ligety of the United States easily captured his second straight World Cup giant slalom race with a flawless and fast final run in Beaver Creek, Colo.
Ligety finished in a combined time of 2 minutes, 25.59 seconds, holding off top rival Marcel Hirscher of Austria by 1.76 seconds. Davide Simoncelli of Italy was third.
Holtz fired after three years in South Florida
College Football: Skip Holtz was fired as South Florida’s football coach after two straight losing seasons in which the program fell back instead of progressed.
A search for a replacement will begin immediately, with no definitive timetable for naming the successor.
The son of former Notre Dame coach Lou Holtz went 16-21 at the Big East school, ending a three-year run with the worst season in school history. The Bulls lost nine of 10 to finish 3-9, 1-6 in the conference, after a 2-0 start.
The firing came a year after Holtz was given a contract extension through 2017 despite going 5-7 in his second season. He will receive a $2.5 million buyout paid over five years.
• Commodores reward Franklin: Vanderbilt has rewarded coach James Franklin with another new contract for leading the Commodores to their best record in 30 years and to consecutive bowls for the first time in school history. Vanderbilt does not discuss contract details, but athletic director David Williams called it a “long-term” contract that will keep Franklin here “a number of years.”
The Commodores (8-4) will be playing in the Music City Bowl on Dec. 31 a few miles away from their Nashville, Tenn., campus.
• Moore out as Appalachian State coach: Appalachian State athletic director Charlie Cobb said that he and Jerry Moore – the winningest coach in school and Southern Conference history – agreed following the 2011 season that this year would be his last as head coach.
Moore was 215-87 in 24 seasons with the Mountaineers and won three straight FCS national championships from 2005-07.