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Tulane right-hander Shooter Hunt was named Conference USA Pitcher of the Year on Tuesday, as the league announced its all conference teams.

Hunt, a junior, was dominant for much of the season, becoming the fourth Tulane pitcher in as many years to post 100 strikeouts in a single season. In the regular season, Hunt, who is expected to be a first-round draft pick in next month's MLB draft, compiled a 9-2 record with a 2.10 ERA and struck out 110, while holding opposing batters to a .148 average.

ATLANTA - NFL owners voted unanimously Tuesday morning to opt out of the collective bargaining agreement with the NFL Players Association, setting up a potential work stoppage in 2011 if the two sides don't agree to a new CBA before then.

Game Keys: The Zephyrs traveled to Oklahoma City the former temporary home of the New Orleans Hornets on Monday and the host RedHawks defeated the Zephyrs 12-3. Nelson Cruz drilled a pair of home runs and drove home three runs in the game. The RedHawks jumped on Zephyr starter Ruddy Lugo in the first inning sending ten batters to the plate and scored four runs. The Zephyrs activated Lugo off the disabled list prior to the game starting and he worked three innings and allowed 7 runs on 8 hits. Oklahoma scored runs in the first five innings after being blanked on Sunday in Memphis. New Orleans' Anderson Machado added two hits including his first home run of the season. The Z's dropped their fourth game on the road trip and now have lost seven of their last 8 games.

After six games of the same, it was going to take a dramatic change of pace to end the Hornets' magical run in New Orleans.
That's exactly what the San Antonio Spurs found Monday night.
Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinal series was not about dominating third-quarter runs leading to blowouts by the team with the home-court advantage. It was about the narrow escape of a franchise that has had so much success -- and the near miss of a young team that promises to stay in contention in the Western Conference for the foreseeable future.
The Spurs won the final game of their series with the Hornets 91-82 on Monday night, advancing to the Western Conference finals and a matchup with the Los Angeles Lakers. A sellout crowd of 18,235 at the New Orleans Arena watched as the most successful season in the history of the Hornets ended with a defeat against the NBA's defending champions.

AP Photo / Alex BrandonTim Duncan and the Spurs held the Hornets off to win the series in Game 7.

Well, the magic had to end at some point, didn't it? The upstart New Orleans Hornets didn't have enough for the veteran San Antonio Spurs on this evening, falling behind early and never recovering in a 91-82 loss.

Thankfully, it wasn't as bad as the final score indicated. Oh sure, the Spurs dominated on the stat sheet, but the Hornets managed to claw their way back into things, keeping the crowd in it, and more importantly, keeping the game compelling for everyone. Only after a couple of late shots rimmed out in the final minute did the Spurs finally have their Game 7 win ... and their meeting with the Lakers assured.

Also worthy of praise was the two teams' composure. After Robert Horry's late-game foul on David West in Game 6, plenty of people speculated that this thing could become a blood bath. But there were no ugly brawls in this one. Not even close. For all the talk of bruised feelings, these teams were remarkably restrained and even respectful of one another. Much ado about nothing? When it came to the subject of Horry-gate, absolutely. The Spurs simply came out and won the game with execution.

After six games of the same, it was going to take a dramatic change of pace to end the Hornets' magical run in New Orleans.

That was exactly what the San Antonio Spurs found Monday night.

Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinal series was not about dominating third-quarter runs and early blowouts by the team with the home-court advantage. It was about the narrow escape of a franchise that has had so much success - and the near miss of a young team that promises to stay in contention in the Western Conference for the foreseeable future.

The San Antonio Spurs remained alive in their quest for a second conseutive NBA championship with a 91-82 win over the Hornets in the seventh and deciding game of the Western Conference semifinals Monday night at the New Orleans Arena.
The Spurs will visit the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday night in Game 1 of the conference finals.
The Spurs and Hornets had split the first six games, each holding service at home. But San Antonio took control in the second quarter with a 15-5 run and never looked back from a 51-42 at intermission.
The Spurs extended their lead to 17 points in the fourth quarter before reserve guard Jannero Pargo led a furious Hornets comeback with 16 of points in the final quarter.
His 3-pointer pulled New Orleans within 83-80 but the Hornets were unable to get any closer.
Manu Ginobili led the Spurs with 26 points. Tim Duncan had 16 points and 14 rebounds, and Tony Parker added 17 points.
David West led the Hornets with 20 points, 12 coming in the first quarter. Pargo and Chris Paul each scored 18 points. Tyson Chandler had 13 points and 15 rebounds.
Road teams won just three of 25 games in the NBA semifinals.

The San Antonio Spurs outscored the Hornets 20-14 in the third quarter to take a commanding 71-56 lead going into the fourth quarter in the seventh and deciding game of the NBA Western Conference Semifinals on Monday night at the New Orleans Arena.
The Hornets shot a dismal five of 18 from the floor in the third quarter.
Tim Duncan went to the bench with his fourth personal with 4:41 remaining in the third but the Spurs built their lead from 10 points to 15 by the end of the period with him on the bench.

The San Antonio Spurs closed out the second quarter with a 15-5 flurry to take a 51-42 lead at halftime in the seventh and deciding game of the NBA Western Conference Semifinals on Monday night at the New Orleans Arena.
Manu Ginobli scored 11 of his team-high 14 points in the second quarter, which saw the Hornets go on a 12-0 run and take a 37-36 lead only to see the Spurs counter with a 13-1 run for a 49-38 lead.
David West led the Hornets with 12 points, all coming in the first quarter. Chris Paul had 10.

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Tim Duncan led the San Antonio Spurs to a 23-20 advantage after the first quarter of the seventh and deciding game of the NBA Western Division semifinals Monday night at a soldout New Orleans Arena.
Duncan scored eight points. Hornets forward David West showed no signs of recurring back spasms, leading all scorers with 12 points.
There were seven lead changes and four ties in the first 12 minutes.

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Eliot Kamenitz / Times-PicayuneChris Paul and the Hornets find themselves in a Game 7 tonight.

It's time to put away those pitchforks and torches in the Robert Horry witch hunt and focus on more important matters: Like Game 7, in the Hive, tonight.

It doesn't get any bigger than that. Or rather, it has never before gotten any bigger than that (for the Hornets anyway). Because if the Hornets can defeat the Spurs tonight, the stakes will surely rise against the Lakers.

But first they have to close out this back-and-forth series. Neither team to date has come close on the opponent's home floor, which bodes well for New Orleans tonight. What doesn't bode well is the injured back of David West, which while not expected to keep him out of action tonight, surely can't help matters in either case.

Linebacker Dan Morgan has decided to retire, according to a press release from the Saints on Monday afternoon. Morgan, who signed with the Saints March 11 as a free agent, played in the NFL for seven seasons, all with the Carolina Panthers.

Morgan missed the final 13 games of 2007 with a partial tear of an Achilles tendon, and had battled through other injuries in recent seasons.

"When we signed Dan, he was committed to making a fresh start, and he was making every effort to rehabilitate the leg injury that he suffered last year," Coach Sean Payton said in the team's statement. "But it wasn't responding as well as he had hoped it would. We wish him well in his continued recovery, and he will be remembered for the excellent player he was during his career."

All they're trying to do is post the biggest victory in franchise history.

The Hornets' players and coaches seem pretty oblivious to that fact, zoned in as they are solely on survival against San Antonio and advancing to the Western Conference finals. Game 7, tonight at the New Orleans Arena, naturally has enough drama and significance attached to it. Every other additive simply becomes lost in the shuffle when, at base, the team's only goal is to win.

But these Hornets, who already have given so much in their first season home after a two-year hurricane exile to Oklahoma City, are in position to give even more to their fans and city, in position to do what no Hornets team ever has done.

Sunday's practice had the typical quirky activities of any Hornets session: Coach Byron Scott shooting 3-pointers, a one-on-one matchup between Jannero Pargo and Julian Wright, the uproarious reaction as a Pargo dunk attempt sent him flying to the court.

The element hidden within what seemed to be an ordinary Sunday was that for the first time, the Hornets could have been participating in their final practice of the season.

After four regular-season and six playoff games between the Hornets and Spurs -- and an even 5-5 split that included 10 very uneven games -- the teams will face off in Game 7 of their Western Conference semifinal series tonight at the New Orleans Arena.

She may be all of 49 inches tall, but this second-grader wowed a Hornets crowd of 18,246 with her pipes

By Darran Simon
Staff writer

As she walked onto her biggest stage yet -- a sellout crowd of 18,246 Hornets fans -- Tione J. Johnson stayed calm.

As the second-grader stood at center court in the New Orleans Arena, staring out at a sea of yellow T-shirts, she wore the pink dress from Easter Sunday and belted out the national anthem.

"I never did have stage fright. I really do love an audience. I love to be applauded," Tione, 8, said a few days after her appearance Tuesday at the fifth playoff game of the Hornets-Spurs series. "I knew I'd get a big applause. It happens to me all the time."

Game Keys: The Nashville Sounds scored three runs in the sixth inning and defeated the visiting Zephyrs 8-5 on Sunday afternoon. Eric Munson delivered a three RBI double to drive home the runs in the sixth inning. Tim Dillard pitched two scoreless innings to earn the win in relief. The Z's starter Willie Collazo pitched five innings and left the game with the lead but for the second time in three days the Z's pen could not hold the contest. Collazo had 94 pitches in five innings and also had a lengthy rain delay factored in to his start. Reliever Joselo Diaz allowed three runs and took the loss. The Z's outhit the Sounds 10-8 and were led by Victor Mendez who had three hits and three RBI. Mendez and Gustavo Molina each homered in the game. Nashville won the series three games to one.

Zane Marks prophesized his International Boxing Association light heavyweight championship fight against Will McIntyre would be analogous to "a Ferrari racing a Honda Civic."

But in the end, the sports car ran out of gas.

McIntyre's superior conditioning and experience bested Mark's speed and agility in a 12-round unanimous decision in the main event of Saturday's "Brawlin in N'awlins," a professional boxing/mixed martial arts card that was held at the Pontchartrain Center in Kenner.

BALTIMORE -- As Big Brown swept toward the lead midway on the final turn in the Preakness on Saturday, jockey Kent Desormeaux took a peek under his arm to check on the opposition.
As Big Brown entered the stretch, Desormeaux looked back again. Then he gave Big Brown his cue.
"I kissed at him," Desormeaux said. "I tapped him on the shoulder, and he just took off. He's got some turn of foot! .¤.¤. I guess I was knuckling on him, elbows and what not, for about a 100 yards, and then I looked between my legs, and they (the other horses) were eight (lengths) behind me. I stopped pushing.
"I said, 'That's enough.'¤"
Desormeaux let Big Brown coast to the finish line. The margin, 5¤1/4 lengths ahead of Macho Again, could have been much greater, though Desormeaux wouldn't guess how much greater. The object wasn't to set records. It was to win, and to leave Big Brown, who had scored a similar victory in the Kentucky Derby, with as much energy as possible for his run toward the Triple Crown.

¦On Tuesday in a posh Atlanta hotel, NFL owners will award the 2012 Super Bowl, likely to Indianapolis. That will extend the time between championship games hosted by New Orleans to a full decade, the longest such drought since seven years passed between XXIV and XXXI in the Superdome.
It's a lull the city, state and the Saints are hoping to end by 2013, the next time the Crescent City could embrace the big game.
There's one glitch: the Saints' lease with the State of Louisiana, which includes financial inducements, expires in 2010. And until a new agreement is reached extending that date past the Super Bowl up for bid -- 2013 -- the Saints and New Orleans won't be back in the Super Bowl-hosting business.
The Saints and the Superdome Commission have held preliminary talks toward a long-term lease agreement.

The NBA announced Saturday that the Hornets-Spurs playoff game Monday night will tip off at 7:30 p.m. The game will be televised by TNT.

The Hornets expect David West to play in Game 7 of their Western Conference semifinal playoff series against San Antonio on Monday night but how effective the All-Star forward will be remains unclear.

Do you think Robert Horry's hard screen that reinjured David West's back in Game 6 was a dirty or clean play? Watch the video and cast your votes!

(Vote after the jump)

In honor of the controversy surrounding Robert Horry's latest "incident" involving an injured opponent (which resulted in David West aggravating his injured back), NOLA.com presents its top 10 questionable Spurs plays.

The term "questionable" can be taken many ways, but it's perhaps the fairest way to describe what has transpired for a team that has a reputation for this sort of thing. There's plenty of visual evidence to support the assertion that these are "dirty" or "unsportsmanlike" plays, but ultimately, it's up to each individual to decide what is dirty and what isn't.

And while good, physical play is to be commended, most (if not all) of the selections for this list warrant debate.

With so much going on in the New Orleans sports community, it's easy to lose sight of things.

That's where we come in. David Gladow of NOLA.com and Jude Young, George Pepis and Emmanuel Pepis of WGSO will offer a weekend preview of sorts every Friday at noon in the form of a live chat with the New Orleans community.

Want to talk about the Saints' latest moves or the upcoming VooDoo game? Want to vent your frustrations over the Hornets playcalling? This is your time to sound off. Send in your questions and comments, and Dave and the gang from WGSO will touch on your hot topics every week.

SAN ANTONIO --Tyson Chandler landed nearly on the feet of a Spurs fan seated in the front row at the AT&T Center on Thursday night after trying to save a loose ball from sailing out of bounds.

It was that kind of night for the Hornets. The effort was there, but the results weren't.

David J. Phillip / APTim Duncan was key tonight and will be again in Game 7.

Recap | Boxscore

It wasn't close for most of the second half, and bad times got even worse as Hornets power forward David West went down after aggravating his back injury midway through the fourth quarter. The Spurs ultimately prevailed in Game 6, 99-80, which means a Game 7 is in order.

Expect the fans to turn out for that one (this ain't the Clippers in December).

But will West make it back in time? And can the team rally to do what it always seems to in these playoffs: Win big at home?

SAN ANTONIO -- The Hornets were outscored 20-12 in the third quarter to trail by a 15-point deficit. The Spurs made 50 percent of their shots, and the Hornets never threatened but often complained about fouls going against them. Tim Duncan had 20 points after three quarters and Manu Ginobili had 19. They forced the Hornets to force up too many shots and they could not push the tempo.

Game Keys: The Zephyr hitting woes continued on Thursday night as the Nashville Sounds defeated the Zephyrs 2-1 at Greer Stadium. The Z's were no hit for six innings and had a total of two hits. Sounds starter Lindsey Gulin worked six innings and did not allow a hit while striking out 10 Zephyrs. Ben Howard entered the game in the seventh and on his first pitch allowed a single to Gustavo Molina to break up the no hit bid. Two batters later Anderson Machado singled and drove home the lone Zephyrs run. Brian Stokes suffered the loss working six innings and allowed two runs. The Sounds scored a run in the second inning on a infield hit by Brendan Katin that scored Russell Branyan who had doubled in the inning. The Sounds added a second run in the third when Stokes allowed two hits and two consecutive walks. The Sounds pen used four pitchers, struck out a total of 13 Z's and Luis Pena earned the save.

SAN ANTONIO -- Although the Spurs maintained better than 55-percent shooting throughout the second quarter, the Hornets still managed to cut a 13-point deficit to seven at halftime. The Hornets outscored the Spurs 27-22 in the second quarter, but they received virtually no production from the bench. Jannero Pargo, Bonzi Wells and Julian Wright were a combined 1-of-7 from the field for two points.

Point guard Chris Paul had 15 points and six assists and center Tyson Chandler had 10 points and five rebounds. Manu Ginobili led the Spurs with 15 points. The Spurs made 5-of-8 3-point attempts.
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The Spurs made 71 percent of their shots and they quickly took control after Tony Parker's layup made the score 19-17. San Antonio quickly extended its lead to 31-21. Tim Duncan scored 10 points on 5-of-7 shooting. Ime Udoka came off the bench and hit first three shots for seven points. The Spurs' defense tightened near the end of the quarter, forcing David West, Bonzi Wells and Julian Wright to all badly miss shots.
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SAN ANTONIO - Tyson Chandler has been playing with a nagging turf toe injury since the regular-season finale against the Dallas Mavericks last month, but he is expected to start tonight's crucial Game 6 against the San Antonio Spurs.

Butch Pierre, who served on the LSU men's basketball staff for 11 years and who was the interim head coach for the final portion of the 2007-08 season announced Thursday that he is leaving LSU to take a position on the men's basketball coaching staff at Oklahoma State according to a release from LSU.

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