Sports

BEREA, Ohio (AP) - The Pittsburgh Steelers arrived in Florida for their seventh Super Bowl. The Cleveland Browns have never played in one. They welcomed a new general manager on Monday. George Kokinis has a lot of work to do. Baltimore's pro...... Full story

COLUMBUS - Ohio State defensive lineman Nader Abdallah gave himself a tough challenge this fall. But it had nothing to do with sacking quarterbacks, dropping running backs for a loss or getting postseason honors. The senior from New Orleans signed...... Full story

CLEVELAND - Being home for the holidays was almost a downer for the Cleveland Cavaliers. Trailing by eight to woeful Washington, the Cavaliers scored 11 straight points in the final 1:33 to preserve their perfect home record with a 93-89 win...... Full story

LOS ANGELES - The six-month wait is over. The Los Angeles Lakers can put the anguish of losing the NBA finals to the Boston Celtics and the embarrassment over the way the series ended behind them. Kobe Bryant had 27 points, nine rebounds and five...... Full story

BEREA - Bruce Gradkowski wouldn't admit to it, but somewhere buried in a dresser drawer or basement box is a Terrible Towel he used to wave at Steelers games. Gradkowski, a product of the University of Toledo, is going home to Pittsburgh on a...... Full story

BATH TOWNSHIP - Bath's Wildkittens being unbeaten is hardly a shocker. But how about Lima Senior's girls basketball team still being undefeated? The Spartans' defense built up a big lead and they held on for an 84-78 victory over Bluffton in the...... Full story

LIMA - It wasn't the pace OSU-Lima/Rhodes State was looking for. Once the University of Northwestern Ohio men's basketball team was able to pick up the tempo of the game, the Racers had little trouble pulling away from the Barons for a convincing...... Full story

ELIDA - It was obvious from the onset that points were going to come at a premium in the Western Buckeye League boys basketball opener for Van Wert and Elida. The score at halftime was a paltry 14-9 before Van Wert junior Jacob Bagley scored 18...... Full story

A fourth-quarter surge carried Delphos St. John's to a 41-35 girls basketball victory over Shawnee on Monday night. The Indians led 28-26 going into the fourth quarter. Zefiryn Bryan had 16 points for the Blue Jays (5-1). Brittany Miller hit three...... Full story

These boys basketball games scheduled for Friday night have been postponed:  Fairbanks at Temple Christian (rescheduled to Jan. 2) Van Wert at Elida (rescheduled to Dec. 22) Shawnee at Kenton (rescheduled to Saturday night) Lincolnview at...... Full story

PHILADELPHIA - Written off last month, the resurgent Philadelphia Eagles are making a strong playoff push. Donovan McNabb threw for 290 yards and two touchdowns, Asante Samuel scored on an interception return and the Eagles beat the struggling...... Full story

ST. MARYS - Zefiryn Bryan scored 14 points and Victoria Recker had 11 points when Delphos St. John's beat St. Marys 47-36 in a non-league girls basketball game on Monday night. The win was the fifth in six games this season for the Blue Jays. St....... Full story

BLUFFTON - A good coach can do little without good players. Design, diagram, run drills all you want, but talent goes a long way. Bluffton University men's basketball coach Guy Neal is a good coach, actually very good. But up until a few years ago,...... Full story

COLUMBUS - No. 18 Ohio State built a 30-point lead in the second half but finished with only a 68-54 win over Cleveland State on Monday night, and the Buckeyes were left in a foul mood. "I was frustrated we lost our lead," said Ohio State center...... Full story

IRVING, Texas - The soap opera that is the Dallas Cowboys' offense gets all the attention. The defense, however, is keeping them in the playoff hunt. DeMarcus Ware added three sacks to his NFL-leading total and the Cowboys took down Eli Manning...... Full story