National Sports Briefs

Published 12:00 am Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Associated Press
STORRS, Conn.ó Connecticut’s basketball coaches say they would like the Huskies to remain in the Big East, if it’s possible.
Hall of Famers Jim Calhoun and Geno Auriemma spoke separately Wednesday, as reporters met with their teams in advance of Friday’s official start of basketball practice.
“My thing is that I’m never, ever, to this day, never, ever will be anti-Big East,” Calhoun said. “I’m pro-Big East and I hope that things can be worked out in the Big East. But, if they can’t be, and we can find a better place for ourselves, then we would do that.”
BASEBALL FAN
SAN FRANCISCO ó The Giants fan who was severely beaten outside Dodgers Stadium was transferred to a rehabilitation facility after nearly seven months in hospitals, doctors said.
Bryan Stow’s move into rehab is a step forward in his recovery after he suffered serious brain injuries in the March attack that had left him barely clinging to life. Doctors at San Francisco General Hospital, where he had been treated since May, predicted a long and rocky road ahead for the 42-year-old.
Stow’s family recently reported on its website that he is speaking and moving his limbs. A doctor overseeing Stow’s care said he is “starting to get up but not quite walking.”
NBA LABOR
NEW YORK ó NBA owners weren’t bluffing when they said they wanted competitive balance just as much as a chance to profit.
Though Commissioner David Stern and Deputy Commissioner Adam Silver have insisted throughout the lockout they needed the potential for both in a new collective bargaining agreement, there was often a belief ó even from players ó that money mattered most.
Yet it was the salary cap system, not the division of revenues, that emerged as the biggest obstacle.
APOLOGY
BOSTON ó Boston College Athletic Director Gene DeFilippo sent a letter of apology to the presidents and ADs of the ACC for saying in a newspaper interview that ESPN told the league to add Pittsburgh and Syracuse.