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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Vickers wins pole, then gives it up

Levi Leipheimer’s win Friday nearly seals overall win in Tour of California. (Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)
From Staff And Wire Reports

Brian Vickers thought he finally had some good news to override the controversy of the past week.

The 25-year-old Red Bull Racing driver won the pole for Sunday’s Auto Club 500 in Fontana, Calif., barely beating heavily favored Jimmie Johnson. But about an hour after taking the sixth pole of his NASCAR Sprint Cup career with a lap of 183.429 mph, Vickers found out his team would have to change the engine in his No. 83 Toyota, sending him to the back of the 43-car field.

He will still be listed as the pole winner, but he will drop out of line when the cars start moving on Sunday and fall to the back, while Johnson, whose fast lap was 183.164, gets to lead the field to the green flag.

Patrick happy to stay put: IndyCar star Danica Patrick said she has not been contacted by anyone from the new, American Formula One team and has no plans to leave the IndyCar Series.

Patrick told the Associated Press she’s flattered by the team’s interest but is happy where she is.

Cycling

Leipheimer wins time trial

Levi Leipheimer won the individual time trial in Solvang, Calif., and added to his overall lead in the Tour of California, with Astana teammate Lance Armstrong finishing 14th.

Leipheimer crossed the finish line of the 15-mile course in 30 minutes, 40 seconds. The American increased his overall lead by 12 seconds.

American David Zabriskie of Garmin-Slipstream was second by 8 seconds in the time trial and second overall, trailing by 36 seconds.

Zabriskie all but conceded the tour to Leipheimer. “It would take a lot of screwing up on their (Astana) part (to lose),” he said.

NBA

James puts up 55

LeBron James scored 55 points, coming up just one shy of his career high, and put together a stunning flourish after halftime that helped Cleveland beat Milwaukee 111-103.

James scored 16 points in the first 2 minutes, 50 seconds of the third quarter, almost single-handedly turning a six-point halftime deficit into an eight-point Cavaliers lead. His career high of 56 came at Toronto on March 20, 2005.

Aldridge, Roy lead Blazers: LaMarcus Aldridge had 24 points and 11 rebounds for Portland in a 108-98 victory over Atlanta. Brandon Roy had 27 points for the Blazers, who won their seventh straight at home.

Bryant soars in OT: Kobe Bryant scored 11 of his 39 points in overtime and the Los Angeles Lakers beat New Orleans 115-111, snapping the Hornets’ NBA-record streak of 13 consecutive overtime victories.

Alston makes impact: Rafer Alston, acquired in a trade from Houston on Thursday, had eight assists hours after officially joining the Magic, and visiting Orlando began life without All-Star Jameer Nelson by routing Charlotte 92-80 at Charlotte, N.C.

Golf

Mickelson fades

With darkness rapidly descending in Los Angeles, Scott McCarron aimed his 5-wood toward the bleachers and watched his shot fade back toward the flag to about 10 feet, a final birdie in his round of 3-under-par 68 that gave him a two-shot lead in the Northern Trust Open.

Defending champion Phil Mickelson was nine shots worse than his opening-round 63, but he is still just three behind McCarron.

Fernandez, Pooley on top: At Naples, Fla., Vicente Fernandez and Don Pooley shot 4-under 68s to share the first-round lead in The ACE Group Classic, a Champions Tour event.

Skiing

Vonn finishes second

Maria Riesch edged Lindsey Vonn to win a World Cup super-combi race in Tarvisio, Italy.

Riesch, who was second following the downhill portion of the event, won the race in a combined time of 2 minutes, 18.57 seconds. Vonn was second, 0.49 behind, and Kathrin Zettel of Austria was third, 2.03 back.

Two golds for U.S.: At Liberec, Czech Republic, Todd Lodwick won the opening Nordic combined event at the world championships to give the United States two golds in one day.

Hours after Lindsey Van became the first U.S. women’s ski jumping world champion on the same hill, Lodwick defended his lead from the cross-country portion by completing jumps of 100.5 and 97.5 meters.

NHL

Granato gets 100th win

The Colorado Avalanche won their third straight game, a 4-1 road win over Washington, to give coach Tony Granato his 100th career victory. The Avalanche also ended Washington’s winning streak at three, and snapped Alex Ovechkin’s points streak at 10 games.

Whitney helps out: Former Spokane Chiefs standout Ray Whitney had two assists for Carolina in the Hurricanes’ 4-1 win over visiting Tampa Bay.

Baseball

Birds extend Roberts

Brian Roberts, 31, finalized a $40 million, four-year extension with the Baltimore Orioles. His new deal calls for salaries of $10 million annually through 2013.

•Nats, Zimmerman agree: Third baseman Ryan Zimmerman and the Washington Nationals agreed to a $3,325,000, one-year contract, avoiding arbitration.

Dodgers grab Hudson: Orlando Hudson has reached an agreement on a $3.8 million, one-year contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers, who would use the former All-Star to replace second baseman Jeff Kent.

Tennis

Venus beats Serena

Venus Williams beat younger sister Serena 6-1, 2-6, 7-6 (3) Friday to reach the final of the Dubai Tennis Championship in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Venus, who leads the career series between sisters at 10-9, faces Virginie Razzano of France in today’s final.