Without Griffin No. 3 Sooners fall to No. 15 Jayhawks

Tyshawn Taylor scored a career-high 26 points and Sherron Collins added 22 of his 26 points in the second half as No. 15 Kansas took over first place in the Big 12 with an 87-78 victory Monday night against third-ranked Oklahoma (22-3, 11-2 Big 12) in Norman, Okla.

Cole Aldrich was able to dominate inside with the Sooners missing preseason All-American Blake Griffin because of a concussion. He had 15 points and a career-high 20 rebounds as the Jayhawks (23-5, 12-1) took control in the race for their fifth straight conference title.

•Louisville rides over Georgetown: Earl Clark scored 22 points, and No. 6 Louisville overcame 16 turnovers with good defense and solid 3-point shooting in a 76-58 victory over Georgetown (14-12, 5-10) in Washington, that moved the Cardinals (22-5, 13-2) into a tie for first place in the Big East.

The Cardinals started 9 for 9 from the field – their first miss coming nearly 11 minutes in – and were 7 for 7 from 3-point range well into the second half.

•Starks sparks Aggies: Takia Starks hit a layup in the lane with 6 seconds left to lead No. 12 Texas A&M to a 57-56 win over second-ranked Oklahoma at College Station, ending the Sooners’ 20-game winning streak in women’s basketball.

The Aggies trailed by one before Starks got the ball at the top of the key and drove into the lane for the winner.

NBA

Nets win on Harris’ heave

Devin Harris hit an unbelievable lunging half-court shot at the buzzer and the New Jersey Nets snapped a season-high five-game losing streak with a 98-96 victory over the slumping Philadelphia 76ers in East Rutherford, N.J.

Seconds earlier, the 76ers seemingly nailed down the victory when Andre Iguodala sank the second of two free throws to give them a one-point lead with 1.8 seconds to play.

The Nets quickly inbounded to Harris, who bobbled the ball after bumping with Iguodala and then heaved in the winner from in front of the scorer’s table.

•Robinson, Knicks beat Pacers: Nate Robinson scored a season-high 41 points, including the tiebreaking layup with 26 seconds left, and the Knicks beat the Indiana Pacers 123-119 in New York.

Robinson scored 32 in the second half. Al Harrington added 27 points and David Lee had 20 points and 13 rebounds for the Knicks.

Jarrett Jack scored a season-high 33 points and Marquis Daniels matched a season best with 28 for the Pacers.

•Celtics frazzle Nuggets: The Boston Celtics handed the Denver Nuggets one of the worst home losses in their history, routing Denver 114-76 behind 26 points from Ray Allen and 22 from Paul Pierce. It was Boston’s second game since Kevin Garnett strained a muscle in his right knee that is expected to sideline him for at least two weeks.

•Jazz welcome back Boozer: Deron Williams had 15 points and 10 assists and Utah welcomed back Carlos Boozer from a three-month absence with a 108-89 rout of the Atlanta Hawks in Salt Lake City.

The Jazz won their fifth straight and got to use Boozer sparingly in his first game since Nov. 19, when he injured a tendon in his left quadriceps.

•McGrady to have surgery: Houston Rockets star Tracy McGrady is having season-ending surgery on his left knee.

McGrady has been bothered all season by soreness and finally said last week he had decided to have the risky surgery, scheduled for today in Chicago.

NHL

Sharks slide by Stars

Devin Setoguchi scored with 12:05 remaining, Evgeni Nabokov stopped 29 shots for his 45th career shutout, and the San Jose Sharks extended their winning streak to four games with a 1-0 victory over the Stars in Dallas.

Setoguchi stickhandled up the right side to get free and fired a low shot from the circle that beat Dallas goaltender Marty Turco to the stick side for Setoguchi’s 25th goal of the season.

•Brodeur tells Devils he’s ready: Martin Brodeur is ready to play for the New Jersey Devils and all the four-time Vezina Trophy winner is waiting for is his first starting assignment since having elbow surgery roughly four months ago.

Coach Brent Sutter refused to pick a date for Brodeur’s return, saying he wants to see how the 36-year-old does at practice the next two days.

Baseball

Nationals GM investigated

Washington Nationals general manager Jim Bowden responded to a report that he’s part of a federal investigation into the skimming of signing bonuses given to prospects from Latin America, saying he’s done nothing improper.

“I’m innocent of any wrongdoing,” Bowden said. “Aside from that, no comment.”

•Washington releases Perez: The Nationals have release pitcher Odalis Perez a day after he failed to show up at spring training in Viera, Fla., by the mandatory reporting deadline.

•Wells injures leg: Vernon Wells, the Toronto Blue Jays’ high-priced center fielder, injured his left hamstring during drills in Dunedin, Fla., and could be sidelined for most of spring training.

•Erstad X-rayed: An X-ray revealed that Houston Astros outfielder Darin Erstad has a small fracture near his right eye after a ball hit him there during outfield drills Sunday at Kissimmee, Fla.

Erstad has been cleared for all baseball activities but won’t participate in today’s intrasquad game or lift weights for a few days.

Football

Falcons, Milloy part ways

Safety Lawyer Milloy, a four-time Pro Bowler, will not be returning to the Atlanta Falcons.

The team announced it will not re-sign the 35-year-old Milloy, who can pursue other options when free agency begins on Friday.