FanFare 3/8/03

Briefly

Baseball

Dodgers closer Eric Gagne is expected to return to the mound after an MRI on his back showed nothing wrong. Dodgers spokesman Josh Rawitch said that Gagne is day-to-day, and that there's no reason to believe his pitching schedule should be interrupted. Gagne had the MRI late Thursday after experiencing stiffness in his back earlier in the week.

Basketball

Magic forward Grant Hill told The Orlando Sentinel that he will miss the rest of the season, and that surgery on his troubled left ankle still is a possibility. Hill has been on crutches and wearing a removable boot since late January. He has a crack in his ankle, which is believed to be the source of his pain.

Football

The Tampa Bay Bucs and defensive end Simeon Rice combined to strike one of the largest contract agreements in NFL history. The two sides completed agreement on a five-year contract that totals $41 million and includes an initial signing bonus and a spring 2004 option bonus worth a combined $20 million.

After two weeks of talk with the Bills, the Falcons finally decided that Peerless Price is right for them. The Falcons have agreed in principle to send their first-round choice in this year's draft, the 23rd overall selection, to the Bills in exchange for Price.

Unable to reach a workable arrangement on a salary reduction, the Giants released cornerback Jason Sehorn, ending the tenure of one of the city's highest-profile players in the past 10 years.

Golf

Bob Tway birdied three of his last five holes for a 4-under 68, giving him a one-stroke lead over Jim Furyk in the Ford Championship at Doral. Tway, who has won a PGA Championship and six other PGA Tour events, was at 11-under 133 on the Blue Monster, which was relatively tame despite temperatures that approached 90 and turned Doral into a sauna.

Motorsports

Ryan Newman was the fastest at Atlanta Motor Speedway, winning his first pole of the season after topping the Winston Cup circuit last year. The 25-year-old Newman posted a lap of 191.417 mph on the 1 1/2-mile quad-oval to take the top spot for Sunday's Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500.

Tennis

Top-seeded Lleyton Hewitt advanced to the semifinals in the Franklin Templeton Tennis Classic, defeating Alex Corretja, 6-4, 6-2. Joining Hewitt in the semifinals was Mark Philippoussis, who upset third-seeded David Nalbandian, 0-6, 6-3, 6-4.

On the air

BoxingWladimir Klitschko (40-1-0) vs. Corrie Sanders (38-2-0), 8:45 p.m., HBO

College baseballSoutheast at Southern Mississippi, 1:45 p.m., KGIR-1220

College men's basketballTemple at Xavier, 11 a.m., ESPN

Ohio at Kent St., 11 a.m., FOX-Midwest

Michigan St. at Ohio St. 11 a.m., FOX-Midwest

Kentucky at Florida, 1 p.m., KFVS

Connecticut at Boston College, 1 p.m., ESPN

Northwestern at Iowa, 1:30 p.m., FOX-Midwest

Regional coverage, 2:30 p.m., WSIL

Ohio Valley Conference championship, 3 p.m., ESPN2

Minnesota at Illinois, 3:30 p.m., FOX-Midwest

Southern Conference championship, 5 p.m., ESPN2

Charlotte at Louisville, 6 p.m., ESPN

St. John's at Miami, 8 p.m., ESPN

College women's basketballSoutheast vs. Austin Peay, 10:45 a.m., KAPE-1550

GolfDubai Desert Classic, 12:30 p.m., GOLF

Ford Championship, 2 p.m., WPSD

MasterCard Classic, same-day tape, 5 p.m., CNBC

High school girls basketballJackson vs. Nerinx Hall, 2:45 p.m., KREZ-104.7, KZIM-960

Notre Dame vs. Lutheran South, KAPE-1550, 8 p.m.

MLB

Chicago Cubs vs. Chicago White Sox, 2 p.m., WGN

MotorsportsARCA Series, noon, SPEED

Australian Grand Prix, 8:30 p.m., SPEED

NBA

L.A. Clippers at Chicago, 7:30 p.m., WGN

NHL

Colorado at Philadelphia, 7 p.m., ESPN2

CHARTER CABLE SPORTS KEY --CNBC (ch. 53), ESPN (42), ESPN2 (43), Lifetime (49)Fox-Midwest (45), Fox-Central (352), Fox-Pacific (353), Fox-Sunshine (351), Fox-World (350), FX(50), Golf Channel (46), MSNBC (55), Outdoors (38), Outdoor Life Network (74), Oxygen (75), Speed Channel (44), TNT (48). Listings and times are provided by the networks and individual stations and are subject to change.

Area events

College baseballSoutheast at Southern Mississippi, 2 p.m.

College indoor trackSoutheast at Notre Dame Invitational, 10 a.m.

College softballSoutheast Classic: Drake vs. Middle Tennessee, 10 a.m.; Southwest Missouri vs. Lipscomb, 10 a.m.; Southeast vs. Middle Tennessee, noon; Siena vs. Lipscomb, noon; Southeast vs. Drake, 2 p.m.; Siena vs. Southwest Missouri, 2 p.m.; Drake vs. Southwest Missouri, 4 p.m.; Lipscomb vs. Middle Tennessee, 4 p.m.

College women's basketballSoutheast vs. Austin Peay, OVC championship, Nashville, Tenn., 11 a.m.

College women's tennisSoutheast at Bradley, 3 p.m.

High school girls' basketballJackson vs. Nerinx Hall, Class 5 quarterfinal, University of Missouri-St. Louis, 3:15 p.m.

Notre Dame vs. Lutheran South, Class 4 quarterfinal, Farmington Civic Center, 8:15 p.m.

Running

Fit for Life 5K, 8 a.m., Show Me Center