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Last Update on March 18, 2010 03:30 EDT
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -- Stephen Jackson scored 18 of his 20 points in the second half and Charlotte rallied to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 100-to-92 on Wednesday night to give Michael Jordan a victory in his first game as Bobcats majority owner. Hours after the NBA's Board of Governors approved Jordan's $275 million purchase, he watched his team stage a dramatic recovery from a horrible start. The comeback from a 19-point, second-quarter deficit matched the largest in franchise record. Stephen Graham matched a career high with 19 points filling in for the injured Gerald Wallace, and the Bobcats won for the seventh time in eight games. Kevin Durant had 26 points and 10 rebounds, but was nine of 26 from the field for the Thunder, whose five-game winning streak was snapped.
| Jordan's bid for Bobcats approved by board |
NEW YORK (AP) -- The NBA Board of Governors has unanimously approved Michael Jordan's bid to buy a controlling interest in the Charlotte Bobcats. NBA commissioner David Stern said in a statement Wednesday that he was pleased the $275 million purchase was "closed in such a smooth and expeditious fashion." Jordan is the sole investor in the ownership group, but he's expected to try to find local partners. The deal includes taking on more than $150 million in debt, covering future losses and putting forward capital to make improvements. The franchise is expected to lose about $30 million this season. Jordan has said he would not comment until he is approved as an owner. He had been part-owner of the Bobcats with final say in all basketball decisions since 2006.
| Delhomme chose Browns for chance to start |
BEREA, Ohio (AP) -- Jake Delhomme isn't ready to be a backup. The former Carolina Panthers quarterback says he signed a two-year contract with the Cleveland Browns because of their strong finish following a struggling start last year, plus the addition of Mike Holmgren as team president. The 35-year-old Delhomme chose the Browns over his hometown New Orleans Saints, where he would have been a backup to Drew Brees. Delhomme acknowledges he didn't play well last season, adding that his five-interception performance in a playoff loss in 2008 led to his difficult start last season. Delhomme threw eight touchdowns and 18 interceptions last year before Carolina released him earlier this month.
| Texas, Wake Forest trying to forget recent history |
NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- Texas has one more chance to halt its late-season slide. The Longhorns, who dropped from Number One in the country to a Number Eight seed in the East Regional, face ninth-seeded Wake Forest in the first round of the NCAA tournament Thursday. Texas started 17-zero before struggling through February and the early part of this month. Coach Rick Barnes is hopeful the Longhorns can regroup and play with confidence. Wake Forest is also smarting a bit after being blown out by Miami in the ACC tournament. The Demon Deacons also lost in the first round of last year's NCAA tournament when they were a Number Four seed.
| Panthers, DE Tyler Brayton agree to 3-year deal |
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -- The Carolina Panthers will have at least one starting defensive lineman returning next season after agreeing on a three-year deal with defensive end Tyler Brayton. Agent Tom Mills says the 30-year-old Brayton visited Seattle and had conversations with Oakland and Jacksonville, but is happy to return to Carolina. Brayton signed a two-year contract before the start of the 2008 season and has started 31 games over the past two years. He was eighth on the team with 45 tackles last season and had five sacks. He'll likely be paired with much younger players next season. The Panthers let defensive end Julius Peppers leave for Chicago in free agency and cut starting tackle Damione Lewis and Maake Kemoeatu.
| Ryan Truex to make NASCAR debut for MWR |
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -- Michael Waltrip Racing plans to enter Ryan Truex in six Nationwide Series races this season. Truex is the younger brother of MWR driver Martin Truex Junior. He turns 18 on Thursday, and that's the legal age to compete on NASCAR's national level. Ryan Truex is scheduled to make his Nationwide debut on July 17th at Gateway International Raceway. His other races are tentatively scheduled to be at Michigan, Richmond, Kansas, Charlotte and Homestead. Truex is also going to defend his title in NASCAR's East Series this season with help from MWR. NCAA TOURNAMENT-1 VS 16
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) -- The NCAA tournament is full of upsets in every matchup -- except for Number One versus Number 16. The top-seeded teams are 100-and-zero vs. the 16th seeds since the field expanded to 64 teams in 1985. This year's possible one-and-doners are Lehigh, East Tennessee State, Vermont and Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Top seeds Kansas, Kentucky, Syracuse and Duke are trying to preserve that perfect record. Sometimes, Number 16 comes close. Number One Georgetown held on to beat Number 16 Princeton 50-to-49 n 1989 in a game in Providence, Rhode Island. This year's Syracuse-Vermont game offers an intriguing chance at an upset. The 14th-seeded Catamounts stunned the Number Three Orange in 2005 in the first round of the tournament.
| NASCAR adds pit stop to All-Star race |
CONCORD, N.C. (AP) -- NASCAR has added a mandatory four-tire pit stop to the format of the Sprint All-Star Race. The race will once again be decided by a 10-lap shootout to the finish. But, for the first time, teams will be required to enter pit road for a full stop. The order that cars exit pit road will determine how they line up for the sprint to the $1 million payout. NASCAR and series sponsor Sprint are constantly tweaking the All-Star race format to amp up the excitement of the event. Last year, Tony Stewart passed Matt Kenseth with two laps to go in the final sprint to win his first All-Star race.
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