Big snow in East cancels events

Michael Jordan got the day off on his 40th birthday, but defending champion Maryland and Wake Forest decided to play despite a blizzard that forced postponements of dozens of sports events.

Jordan expected to spend his birthday playing for the Washington Wizards against the Toronto Raptors on Monday afternoon. But the NBA rescheduled the game for March 4 in the wake of a storm that pelted metropolitan Washington.

It was the first of two games scheduled for the MCI Center on Monday that was postponed. No. 7 Pittsburgh and Georgetown were to meet in a Big East game.

Two other Big East games were called off: Villanova at Seton Hall and Miami at Providence.

Other Division I men's basketball postponements: Ohio at Akron, Chattanooga at Virginia Military, Appalachian State at Wofford and East Tennessee State at North Carolina-Greensboro.

The worst blizzard to hit the mid-Atlantic and central Appalachian states in seven years shut down much of the region on Presidents Day with windblown snow that piled up as much as 4 feet deep, halting air and some rail travel and causing at least 16 deaths.

The Atlantic Coast Conference showdown between Wake Forest and Maryland originally was scheduled for Sunday. It was pushed back to Monday afternoon.

Tracks cancel cards

Several race tracks canceled cards for Sunday and Monday, and several minor league hockey games and women's college basketball games also were called off.

And while it didn't snow in Florida, the Daytona 500 still got hit by bad weather, with Michael Waltrip winning the rain-shortened race Sunday.

The afternoon start to stock car racing's premier event was moved up by about 20 minutes because of the forecast of rain. The heavy rain that struck Daytona was part of a weather system that brought snow to much of the East Coast.

The race was halted after 63 laps, then restarted 68 minutes later when the track was dried. The race was delayed a second time with drivers about to complete the 110th lap of a 200-lap race, and Waltrip was declared the winner after an hour's wait.

Knowing that snow was in the forecast, Wake Forest arrived in College Park, Md., on Friday. But officials called off the game Sunday because of concerns about the safety of fans, game officials and arena employees.

Coming off a double-overtime victory over Duke, No. 15 Wake Forest hoped to strengthen its hold on first place in the conference by defeating No. 16 Maryland.

ACC rules dictate that a game should be played if both teams and the officials can make it to the arena, but an exception was made Sunday.

Wake Forest (17-3, 7-2) leads Maryland, the defending ACC regular-season champs, by a half-game. The Demon Deacons beat Maryland (15-6, 7-3) this season at home.

At Laurel Park in Maryland, snow forced the postponement of horse racing Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Maryland officials were forced to shuffle the two biggest races of the winter meet, the Barbara Fritchie Handicap and the General George Handicap. Both $200,000 events were moved to Saturday.

The racing card at Philadelphia Park was canceled Sunday and Monday. Aqueduct abandoned Sunday's card after one race and postponed Monday racing. Racing at the New York track was halted Sunday after temperatures dipped to 13 degrees. The $75,000 Rare Treat, scheduled for Monday, will be run Wednesday.

In New Jersey, the Meadowlands and Monmouth Park canceled Monday simulcasting cards.