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Kobe Bryant hit a baseline jump shot with 4.2 seconds left and the Los Angeles Lakers wrapped up a six-game road trip by holding on to beat the Raptors 94-92 on Sunday, their eighth victory in nine meetings with Toronto
Arc's five up, five down: After No. 11 Michigan State's 58-48 upset of No. 3 Ohio State, you'd be a fool to discount the Spartans' national title chances now.
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Golf's dream pairing - Woods and Mickelson - is on the course in the final round at Pebble Beach. Jason Sobel has hole-by-hole reports.
The United States completed a 5-0 rout of Switzerland in the Davis Cup on Sunday, with 19-year-old Ryan Harrison and John Isner winning closing singles matches.
Euro Roundup: First-place Manchester City won 1-0 at Aston Villa on Sunday on Joleon Lescott's goal in the 63rd minute, maintaining its two-point lead over Manchester United in the Premier League.
Tessa Worley of France fought off gusting winds to win a second consecutive World Cup giant slalom Sunday in the Andorran Pyrenees. Overall leader Lindsey Vonn was more than a second behind and finished eighth.
Robins: It’s the Year of the Dragon on the Lunar calendar, and this Chinese influence could extend to it also being the year of the Pekingese on the green carpet at the 136th Westminster Dog Show on Tuesday.
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The opponent
Larry Holmes was proudest of the black eye.
He got it as an amateur the first time he stepped into the ring for a sparring session with Ali at his training camp in Deer Lake, Pa.
“I didn’t want to put ice on it,” Holmes said. “Having him give me a black eye meant a lot to me.”
Holmes would later give Ali much worse when he beat him in his last big fight.
“I can’t just say Ali was the greatest because there were so many great fighters out there. I can’t say he was greater than Marciano, Louis, Dempsey and everyone else,” Holmes said.
“A lot of it today is that people feel sorry for him because he’s got that Parkinson’s or whatever is wrong with him. They feel he doesn’t have too much longer to live and they want to be part of the legend.”
The promoter
Bob Arum wonders if it was somehow partly his fault. A lot of the punches Ali took came on his watch.
Ali had 61 fights over 21 years, winning 56. Arum promoted 25 of them.
“I feel terrible about what happened because for better or worse I played a part in it,” Arum said. “Not that it wouldn’t have happened if somebody else was involved. But I feel I played a part in his physical decline.”
Arum’s wife, Lovee, and Lonnie Ali still often talk on the phone. He sees Ali on occasion, and each time he feels conflicted.
“Here was a guy who my memories of him were larger than life. He was full of life, like nobody I’ve ever seen in my life,” Arum said. “Now to see what is essentially a shell of what was is hard. Every time I see him I’m glad to see him, but I feel terrible.”
The fan
Musician and sometime actor Kris Kristofferson first saw Ali in Rome at the 1960 Olympics. They became good friends and even starred together in a television movie, “Freedom Road.”
He hopes there will be advances in treating Parkinson’s before it’s too late.
“He’ll be remembered more than any other great athlete because of his humanitarian work and the courage he showed in his life,” Kristofferson said. “He’s probably the most remarkable person I ever met on the planet. He’s an amazing human being.”
The photographer
Howard Bingham had no idea his life would change that day, in 1962, when he went to take pictures of a young fighter at a Los Angeles press conference.
“My assignment that day was to cover this big loudmouth coming into town,” said Bingham, who took pictures for a black weekly newspaper. “I had never really heard of him.”
Turns out, Bingham was photographing a young Cassius Clay. He’s been with Ali ever since and calls him his best friend.
“I’ve had the opportunity to meet and greet kings and queens. And kings and queens have had the opportunity to meet me, too,” Bingham said. “It’s been wonderful.”
Bingham still travels with Ali and talks to him regularly on the telephone.
“I can’t believe that on January 17, 2007, he’ll be 65,” Bingham said. “It just doesn’t seem real.”
Robins: It’s the Year of the Dragon on the Lunar calendar, and this Chinese influence could extend to it also being the year of the Pekingese on the green carpet at the 136th Westminster Dog Show on Tuesday.
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Robins: This year, six new breeds will be making their debut on the green carpet for the Westminster Dog Show, which begins Monday.
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Wesseling: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for AFC teams.
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Silva: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for NFC teams.