Duncan, Parker too much for Hornets as Spurs even series 2-2

By David J. Phillip (AP)

Tim Duncan had 22 points and 15 rebounds, and the San Antonio Spurs beat the New Orleans Hornets 100-80 on Sunday night to even the Western Conference semifinals at 2-2.

Tony Parker added 21 points for the Spurs, who led nearly the entire game and are assured of a Game 6 back in San Antonio. Chris Paul scored 23 for the Hornets.

Game 5 is Tuesday in New Orleans.

By Rob Carr (AP)

Nick Saban normally spends this time of year on the road evaluating prep prospects and visiting with high school coaches.

The Alabama coach is doing a different kind of networking these days _ all from the comfort of his office. Saban is among a handful of college head coaches using video conferences to chat with recruits because they can\'t meet in person.

A new NCAA regulation _ dubbed the \"Saban Rule\" _ is keeping coaches from making those traditional visits to high school campuses during the spring evaluation period that runs through May.

Web cams have hardly...

By Orlin Wagner (AP)

Meat retailers can now trace their wares from the ranch to the refrigerator case using DNA analysis.

IdentiGEN Ltd., based in Ireland with U.S. offices in Lawrence, Kan., said its DNA TraceBack technology can boost consumer confidence, as well as the value of the hamburger, steak, pork cuts and other meat.

TraceBack can determine not only where meat came from but whether it\'s organic or Angus _ or whatever the label says, company officials said. Chief Executive Don Marvin said it\'s the first product to offer DNA tracing for the entire meat supply chain.

\"If you see a...

By Bill Haber (AP)

A construction company owner who lost two homes in Hurricane Katrina claimed a $97 million Powerball prize, a jackpot won off a ticket he bought at a convenience store where he stopped to buy his wife a gallon of milk.

When he turned in the winning ticket, Carl Hunter became the largest Powerball winner in Louisiana\'s history. He won the jackpot in January, but the 73-year-old small businessman waited nearly four months to claim the prize.

An avid lottery player, Hunter said he already had bought a Powerball ticket on Jan. 16 at the gas station less than two blocks from his...

By David J. Phillip (AP)

Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili both scored 31 points and the San Antonio Spurs beat the New Orleans Hornets 110-99 on Thursday night in Game 3 of the Western Conference semifinals.

Chris Paul led the Hornets, who still hold a 2-1 series lead, with 35 points and nine assists. David West had 23 points and 12 rebounds for New Orleans, which was dominant in the first two games of the series.

Game 4 is Sunday night in San Antonio.

By David J. Phillip (AP)

Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili both scored 31 points and the San Antonio Spurs beat the New Orleans Hornets 110-99 on Thursday night in Game 3 of the Western Conference semifinals.

Chris Paul led the Hornets, who still hold a 2-1 series lead, with 35 points and nine assists. David West had 23 points and 12 rebounds for New Orleans, which was dominant in the first two games of the series.

Game 4 is Sunday night in San Antonio.

By Kevork Djansezian (AP)

Kobe Bryant added another honor Thursday to go with his MVP award, becoming the only unanimous selection to the All-NBA team. The Lakers star was voted to the first team for the third straight season and fifth time in his career. He led Los Angeles to the best record in the Western Conference and was presented with the MVP trophy Wednesday before helping the Lakers to a 120-110 victory over Utah in Game 2 of the conference semifinals.

Joining Bryant on the first team were New Orleans guard Chris Paul, who was three votes shy of being a unanimous pick, along with Boston\'s Kevin...

By Kevork Djansezian (AP)

Kobe Bryant added another honor Thursday to go with his MVP award, becoming the only unanimous selection to the All-NBA team.

The Lakers star was voted to the first team for the third straight season and fifth time in his career. He led Los Angeles to the best record in the Western Conference and was presented with the MVP trophy Wednesday before helping the Lakers to a 120-110 victory over Utah in Game 2 of the conference semifinals.

Joining Bryant on the first team were New Orleans guard Chris Paul, who was three votes shy of being a unanimous pick, along with Boston\'s...

By (AP)

It was Asia\'s answer to Hurricane Katrina. Packing winds upwards of 120 mph, Cyclone Nargis became one of Asia\'s deadliest storms by hitting land at one of the lowest points in Myanmar and setting off a storm surge that reached 25 miles inland.

\"When we saw the (storm) track, I said, \'Uh oh, this is not going to be good,\" said Mark Lander, a meteorology professor at the University of Guam. \"It would create a big storm surge. It was like Katrina going into New Orleans.\"

Forecasters began tracking the cyclone April 28 as it first headed toward India. As projected, it...

By Gene J. Puskar (AP)

It\'s a few days before Mother\'s Day and Robert Jenkins jumps every time the phone rings.

He\'s got about 220 reservations at his Cajun-style restaurant, Bayou, for brunch on Sunday. Last year, he had 300 reservations _ but with the economy sagging, business is down.

Like many in the industry, he believes that love for Mom will trump fears about the economy. So when the phone rings this week, he\'s hoping it\'s someone booking a spot in his 115-seat dining room overlooking the Milwaukee River.

\"You have high expectations and this is one of those markers that you have...

By Kevork Djansezian (AP)

The chants of \"MVP, MVP\" directed at Kobe Bryant by Los Angeles Lakers\' fans have a different meaning now. They represent fact, not just sentiment. Bryant played like a Most Valuable Player on Wednesday night, getting 34 points, eight rebounds and six assists, and the Lakers beat the Utah Jazz 120-110 to take a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference semifinals and remain the only unbeaten team in the postseason.

Bryant received his first MVP trophy from NBA commissioner David Stern in a brief ceremony before the game.

\"I\'m at a loss for words. I don\'t know what to say,\"...

By Kevork Djansezian (AP)

The chants of \"MVP, MVP\" directed at Kobe Bryant by Los Angeles Lakers\' fans have a different meaning now. They represent fact, not just sentiment. Bryant played like a Most Valuable Player on Wednesday night, getting 34 points, eight rebounds and six assists, and the Lakers beat the Utah Jazz 120-110 to take a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference semifinals and remain the only unbeaten team in the postseason.

Bryant received his first MVP trophy from NBA commissioner David Stern in a brief ceremony before the game.

\"I\'m at a loss for words. I don\'t know what to say,\"...

By (AP)

Democratic congressional candidate Travis Childers isn\'t afraid to get dirty to win.

\"Let me tell y\'all something mighty quick because I know y\'all didn\'t come to a cow sale to hear a politician,\" Childers said recently as he stepped into a muddy stockyard pen, wearing a suit and black dress shoes. \"I\'ll be responsive to the needs of north Mississippians.\"

Childers _ a socially conservative county official from the far northeastern corner of the state _ is trying to wrest a congressional seat away from the Republicans in the deeply conservative state.

Actually,...

By Mark J. Terril (AP)

Lakers star Kobe Bryant received his MVP trophy from NBA commissioner David Stern in a brief ceremony before Los Angeles faced Utah in Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals Wednesday night.

\"I\'m at a loss for words, I don\'t know what to say,\" Bryant said as the Staples Center crowd of 18,997 roared its approval and chanted M-V-P. \"I love you guys so much. We\'re going to play until June. Let\'s get this party started.\"

The 29-year-old Bryant was a runaway winner of his first MVP award, receiving 82 first-place votes and 1,100 points to far outdistance New...

By Kevork Djansezian (AP)

Lakers star Kobe Bryant received his MVP trophy from NBA commissioner David Stern in a brief ceremony before Los Angeles faced Utah in Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals Wednesday night.

\"I\'m at a loss for words, I don\'t know what to say,\" Bryant said as the Staples Center crowd of 18,997 roared its approval and chanted M-V-P. \"I love you guys so much. We\'re going to play until June. Let\'s get this party started.\"

The 29-year-old Bryant was a runaway winner of his first MVP award, receiving 82 first-place votes and 1,100 points to far outdistance New...

By (AP)

Spc. Loren Dauterman, who trained at Fort McCoy in Wisconsin last month with the National Guard, found something good to say about the falling-apart floors and ceilings in her quarters.

Barely.

\"It is better than sleeping out in the woods,\" Dauterman said last week, \"but not a whole lot better.\"

Thousands of soldiers at Fort McCoy, Fort Campbell and elsewhere are assigned to barracks built for the GIs who fought World War II and the Korean War. The buildings are showing their age, and the soldiers are getting fed up.

After a soldier\'s father posted a video on...

By Todd Bennett (AP)

Billy Knight will resign as general manager of the Atlanta Hawks in July, despite leading the team to its first playoff appearance in nine years.

Knight said Wednesday it was time to \"take a break\" following a season when his authority appeared to be weakened by unsuccessful lobbying with owners to fire coach Mike Woodson.

Knight will step down July 1.

The Hawks, absent the playoffs since 1999, lost in the first round to the heavily favored Boston Celtics in seven games. Over six years, Knight played the lead role in rebuilding the Hawks and ended the NBA\'s longest...

By (AP)

Spc. Kaila Colvin is looking forward to getting married for the usual reasons, and for one more particular to a soldier: not having to live in Fort Campbell\'s decrepit barracks anymore.

Spc. Loren Dauterman, who trained at Fort McCoy last month with the Wisconsin National Guard, found something good to say about the falling-apart floors and ceilings in his quarters. Barely.

\"It is better than sleeping out in the woods,\" Dauterman said last week, \"but not a whole lot better.\"

Thousands of soldiers are assigned to barracks built for the GIs who fought World War II...

By (AP)

Some survivors arrived half-naked, others wore clothes they scavenged from the dead.

Myanmar\'s rice-trading town of Labutta _ the only spit of high ground in a vast watery landscape _ has become a beacon of hope for tens of thousands who lived through the cyclone\'s fury, most losing homes and family members.

The survivors made the journey in rickety wooden boats with makeshift sails fashioned out of blankets, dodging the bloated corpses of buffaloes and dead neighbors floating in the murky waters.

It was a journey from horror to misery for most, who described...

By (AP)

Hungry people swarmed the few open shops and fistfights broke out over food and water in Myanmar\'s swamped Irrawaddy delta Wednesday as a top U.S. diplomat warned that the death toll from a devastating cyclone could top 100,000.

The minutes of a U.N. aid meeting obtained by The Associated Press, meanwhile, revealed the military junta\'s visa restrictions were hampering international relief efforts.

Only a handful of U.N. aid workers had been let into the impoverished Southeast Asian country, which the government has kept isolated for five decades to maintain its iron-fisted...

By Charlie Neibergall (AP)

Apart from George McGovern, a plainspoken man who knows something about losing elections, not a single Democrat of national stature publicly urged Hillary Rodham Clinton on Wednesday to end her campaign for the White House.

They didn\'t have to.

There was no shortage of other ways to signal, suggest, insinuate or instigate the same thing. And certainly no need to apply unseemly pressure to a historic political figure, a woman who has run a grueling race, won millions of votes and drawn uncounted numbers of new Democratic voters to the polls.

Instead, many Democrats...

By Alex Brandon (AP)

Lingering fears about formaldehyde fumes inside federally issued trailers and the impending hurricane season has Mayor Ray Nagin pushing to empty thousands of the structures, intended as temporary housing after Katrina.

With the third anniversary of Katrina coming up Aug. 29, the push is the first for the city, where most of the remaining trailers sit on private property as residents continue to rebuild their homes.

\"We need to get everybody out,\" Nagin said. \"We need to find out if anybody\'s health has been harmed and how do we deal with that, and find the housing...

By Todd Bennett (AP)

Billy Knight will resign as general manager of the Atlanta Hawks in July, despite leading the team to its first playoff appearance in nine years.

Knight said Wednesday it was time to \"take a break\" following a season when his authority appeared to be weakened by unsuccessful lobbying with owners to fire coach Mike Woodson.

Knight will step down July 1.

The Hawks, absent the playoffs since 1999, lost in the first round to the heavily favored Boston Celtics in seven games. Over six years, Knight played the lead role in rebuilding the Hawks and ended the NBA\'s longest...