NBA
Knicks’ J.R. Smith wins NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award
GREENBURGH, N.Y. – J.R. Smith won the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award Monday after turning a role he didn’t want into one of the strengths of the New York Knicks’ first division championship team in nearly two decades.
Smith received 484 points, including 72 first-place votes, from a panel of 121 writers and broadcasters. The Clippers’ Jamal Crawford finished second with 352 points, getting 31 first-place votes.
Smith averaged 18.1 points in 80 games, all off the bench. He had 29 games in which he scored 20 points as a reserve, tying Crawford for the NBA lead.
The 6-6 swingman wanted to start but said he accepted it fairly quickly once coach Mike Woodson told him he would be a reserve.
The New Jersey native had by far his best NBA season, helping the Knicks to their first Atlantic Division title since 1994.
soccer
Manchester United locks up 20th Premier League crown
MANCHESTER, England – Manchester United won its record 20th English league title, beating Aston Villa 3-0 Monday night on Robin van Persie’s first-half hat trick to clinch the championship with four games to spare.
Van Persie, signed from Arsenal last summer, put United ahead 83 seconds in when he scored from close range. He doubled the lead with a volley in the 12th minute and completed his hat trick in the 33rd minute for his league-high 24th goal of the season.
Manchester United (27-4-3) has a 16-point lead over Manchester City (20-5-8). City edged United in the final minute of last season with a pair of injury-time goals against Queen Park Rangers to win its first title since 1968.
This is the earliest a club has clinched the Premier League title since Manchester United on April 14, 2001, according to STATS.
With victories in its last four matches, United would break the points record of 95 set by Chelsea’s in 2004-05.
Liverpool’s Suarez fined, faces ban for biting player
LONDON – Luis Suarez was charged by England’s Football Association, fined by Liverpool, and even rebuked by the government on Monday for biting an opponent a day earlier.
In a Premier League match broadcast globally on Sunday, Suarez bit Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic’s arm. Although he escaped punishment during the game, Suarez now faces a lengthy ban.
“The incident was not seen by the match officials and has therefore been retrospectively reviewed,” the FA said in a statement. “It is alleged that the conduct of Suarez constitutes violent conduct, and it is the FA’s contention that the standard punishment of three matches that would otherwise apply is clearly insufficient in these circumstances.”
The sum was undisclosed, but clubs only can fine players two weeks’ worth of wages without seeking permission from the Professional Footballers’ Association. Suarez said he wants money to be donated to families affected by the 1989 Hillsborough Stadium disaster, which killed 96 Liverpool fans.
bowling
Scarborough rolls PBA’s first 900 series - three 300s
THE VILLAGES, Fla. – A North Carolina man has rolled the first 900 series in Professional Bowlers Association history – three consecutive perfect games.
Joe Scarborough, a 50-year-old self-employed electrical contractor from Charlotte, opened the first round of qualifying in the PBA50 Sun Bowl on Sunday with three games of 300, throwing 36 consecutive strikes.
Scarborough was competing in his second event in the renamed PBA Senior Tour. He said his previous high three-game series was an 838 and he had bowled 14 prior 300 games.
Scarborough was a PBA member from 1991-2001 and twice bowled in standard PBA Tour events. He rejoined when he turned 50 in October.
Associated Press
