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2B Daily News – Friday, June 22, 2012 Roger Clemens risked prison time by taking his chances in court. Clemens was acquit- ted of all charges. Magic hires GM ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Without a coach and facing a future that may not include five- time All-Star center Dwight Howard, the Orlando Magic are at something of a cross- roads. Now at least they MCT file photo Clemens risked prison WASHINGTON (AP) — Roger Clemens rejected a plea deal that would have spared him prison time, and instead took his chances by going to trial. Clemens lawyer Rusty Hardin said in a telephone interview Thursday that prosecu- tors offered to let the former pitcher plead guilty to one count of lying to Congress when he denied using human growth hor- mone. In exchange, Clemens would have received probation. The seven-time Cy Young Award winner gress,''' Hardin said. On Monday, a jury in Washington acquitted Clemens on all counts. Under U.S. sentencing guidelines, Clemens probably would have faced up to 15 months to 21 months in prison if convict- ed. ''His reason was, 'I didn't lie to Con- was indicted in August 2010 on six counts for allegedly lying to Congress for denying he used HGH as well as steroids. At the time, Hardin revealed that his client had rejected a plea offer, but the lawyer declined to provide the details. In the interview Thursday, Hardin said his client was offered the deal in December 2009 and immediately rejected it. The first attempt to try Clemens last year ended in a mistrial when prosecutors played a snippet of video evidence that had previ- ously been ruled inadmissible, and U.S. Dis- trict Judge Reggie Walton indicated back then that Clemens was looking at jail time. Explaining why he was calling a mistrial, Walton said, ''Because if this man got con- victed, from my perspective, knowing how I sentence, he goes to jail. And I'm not going to, under the circumstances, when this has happened, put this man's liberty in jeop- ardy.'' have someone in charge. The Magic introduced their new general man- ager Thursday, assigning 30-year-old Rob Henni- gan with the task of reversing the fortunes of an NBA franchise that has been slipping since reaching the NBA Finals three years ago. ''There's no question there's pressure,'' said Hennigan. ''This is a pressure business and you've got to earn your keep, and nobody's going to try to do any favors for you. We're just going to keep our heads down and keep our sleeves rolled up and get to work.'' Hennigan was an assistant general manag- er for the last two of his four years in Oklahoma City after entering the Alabama fan denies tree poisoning confession OPELIKA, Ala. (AP) — A judge on Thursday delayed the trial of an Alabama fan accused of poisoning Auburn's cherished Toomer's Corner oak trees, citing increased media attention stemming from a report this week that the defendant confessed outside the courtroom. Defense attorneys for Harvey Updyke have also asked the judge to move the trial to a different location, saying that the jury pool so close to Auburn University has been tainted. Judge Jacob Walker said Thursday that he would schedule a hearing to consider the request. Prosecutor Robbie Treese objected after the judge's ruling and noted that the issue was ''invited by the actions of the defendant.'' But Walker replied that the report of the confession marked ''a very unusual set of cir- cumstances.'' Two days earlier, the school's newspaper published a story that said Updyke, a fan of rival Alabama, told a reporter during a break: ''Did I do it? Yes.'' ed for the past three BCS champi- onships. Walker said 10 of the 31 jurors in the courtroom Thursday indicated they had heard something about the case since initially reporting for jury duty two days earlier, and several said they had read or heard details of the reported confession. Those results prompted Wess to renew his call to push the trial back, and to move it from Lee County. But it's unclear if a jury can be seated without anyone who has pre- conceived notions in a state where few profess neutrality in the Alabama- Auburn rivalry. ''I know this is a case that's cov- ered by a number of media outlets throughout the state of Alabama,'' Wess said outside the courthouse. ''But in this particular case, he has so many jurors who are connected to Auburn in one way or the other. It may be better for the case to be moved outside Auburn.'' Many of the jurors had indicated Updyke denied making the statement, but word had already spread in a case that has long rankled Auburn fans and further stirred tempers in the heated rivalry that sometimes borders on obsession. Updyke allegedly poisoned the two trees, located less than 10 miles from the courthouse, after the Tigers beat the Alabama Crimson Tide in the 2010 Iron Bowl en route to the national title. The two bitter rivals have account- Defense attorney Everett Wess said TITLE IX (Continued from page 1B) mentioned in Title IX. At a time when women earned 9 percent of all medical degrees and just 7 percent of law degrees, Bayh and the other Title IX supporters were simply hoping to provide more opportunities for women in higher education, give them a better shot at high- er-paying jobs. ''It was clear that the greatest danger or damage being done to women was the inequality of higher education,'' said Bayh, whose late wife, Marvel- la, had once been rejected by the University of Vir- ginia. ''If you give a per- son an education, whether it's a boy or girl, young woman or young man, they will have the tools necessary to make a life for families and them- selves.'' But just as admissions numbers and financial aid fell under the broad defi- nition of ''education pro- gram,'' so, too, did athlet- ics. ''Sport is an educa- tional opportunity. You learn about yourself and the world through sport,'' said Angela Ruggiero, president-elect of the Women's Sports Founda- they have ties to Auburn, and nearly half said they at least have close friends or family that have rolled the now-sickly trees with toilet paper dur- ing celebrations, a longstanding tradi- tion for Auburn fans. A tearful Updyke, who named a daughter Crimson Tyde and a son after legendary Alabama coach Bear Bryant, was escorted from the court- room by a deputy following the rul- ing. He has pleaded not guilty by rea- son of mental disease or defect on charges that include criminal mischief tion and a member of the 1998 U.S. team that won the first Olympic gold medal in women's ice hockey. It wouldn't be enough for schools to tack sign- up sheets on a bulletin board and count that as a team, or clear out a stor- age closet and call it a locker room. Title IX law called for equal opportunity to play, and that meant schools had to offer scholarships and provide the same access to equipment, coaching and facilities. Some prominent coaches and athletic directors, worried that Title IX would gut foot- ball, pushed to have rev- enue sports — namely football — excluded from the compliance formula. But their attempt to amend the legislation in 1973 backfired. Spectacu- larly. The Department of Health, Education and Welfare was instead ordered to develop a framework for how Title IX was to be interpreted and followed, with most of the regulations addressing athletics. It was these rules, issued in 1975, that pro- vided the backbone for the legislation and have allowed it to withstand and desecrating a venerable object. ''He wanted to go through with the process as well and get this over with because it's wearing on him,'' Wess said. ''As you can see, he's lost weight from the time that he was charged to today.'' Wess declined to say whether the latest delay might make it more likely the sides can reach a plea agreement. Walker, who had not ruled on pre- vious venue change requests, noted that prospective jurors were getting asked about the case by family mem- bers, customers and even their doctor. ''People continually interject their opinions once they know they're on jury duty,'' Walker said. He noted that this week's report ''has created more news and media attention about this case than there already was.'' ''Every day we'll be asking jurors, 'Anybody talk to you about the case?'' he said. Reporters were told to leave the courthouse minutes after the ruling. The trial had already been delayed several times for a variety of reasons since Updyke's arrest in March 2011. Updyke's attorneys had asked the judge to prevent the statement to the student reporter and a statement to police from being used at trial. Court papers said that Updyke admitted telling the media he poisoned the trees, but that he denied actually doing it. The documents said Updyke ''never admitted to poisoning the trees'' when he spoke to police. repeated challenges in court. ''They could have got- ten exemptions for the big sports ... if they didn't cry so much about it,'' said Donna Lopiano, who has been at the forefront of defending Title IX, first as the women's athletics director at Texas from 1975-92 and then as CEO of the Women's Sports Foundation from 1992 to 2007. ''It created this media attention that allowed the women to voice the benefits of sport for boys and girls, and they convinced the public and Congress this was impor- tant for boys and girls. That was a tremendous accident.'' Once given the chance, girls flocked to the play- ing fields. Before Title IX, fewer than 300,000 high school girls — one in 27 — played sports; there were less than 32,000 female athletes at the collegiate level. By 1974, just two years after the passage of Title IX, the number of high schoolers participat- ing in sports had skyrock- NBA FINALS Game 1:Oklahoma City 105, Miami 94 Game 2: Miami 100, Oklahoma City 96 Game 3: Miami 91, Oklahoma City 85 Game 4: Miami 104, Oklahoma City 98 Game 5: Miami 121, Oklahoma City 106 x-Sunday at Oklahoma City x-Tuesday at Oklahoma City x - not necessary eted to 1.3 million. Now more than 3 mil- lion high school girls — one in two — play sports. More than 191,000 females played NCAA sports in 2010-11. NBA in the front office of the San Antonio Spurs in 2004. Those cities proved to be the right places, and at the right times, for Henni- gan, who is the league's youngest general man- ager. ''His experience, and what he's done in the organizations that he's been with, far exceed his years, and clearly that's what's important,'' said Alex Martins, the Magic's chief executive officer. ''Age is not a factor; experience and who you've worked with and the habits that you've developed, that's what's important in being successful in this role.'' Hennigan replaces Otis Smith, who was fired May 21 along with coach Stan Van Gundy. The Magic won 52 or more games in four straight seasons under Smith and Van Gundy, and reached the finals in 2009. They went 37-29 this season and lost in the first round of the playoffs for the second NHL (Continued from page 1B) Russian Super League, can offer ''There's so much money in the KHL right now, it's very easy for those guys to say, 'I'll take my $5 million and go play in Russia for two or three years and then I'll come back,''' Buffalo Sabres director of amateur scout- ing Kevin Devine said. ''Well, it never becomes that easy.'' The prospect of enter- ing a bidding war with the KHL has led to a steep drop in the number of Russian players selected in recent drafts. There were 18 Russians taken in the 2004 Draft, including top overall pick Alexander Ovechkin and No. 2 pick Evgeni Malkin, who won the Hart Trophy as the NHL's MVP on Thursday night. There have been 16 Russians selected in the last two drafts combined. The Boston Bruins were fresh off a Stanley Cup win last summer when they grabbed winger Alexander Khokhlachev in the second round. Even the prospect of joining an elite team couldn't stop Khokhlachev bolting for the KHL. And unlike their mothers or grandmothers, who were often limited to basketball and softball if they did get a chance to play, women are now participating in every- thing from squash to skiing, rugby to wrestling. ''Title IX was the sec- ond-most important piece of civil rights legislation passed in this country,'' said Debbie Yow, athletic direc- tor at N.C. State. ''Had it not passed, the options and opportunities for women in this country and the world would be vastly different.'' WNBA WESTERN CONFERENCE WL Pct GB Minnesota 10 1 .909 — Los Angeles 9 3 .750 1.5 San Antonio 4 4 .500 4.5 Phoenix 3 7 .300 6.5 Seattle 3 7 .300 6.5 Tulsa 1 10 .091 9 EASTERN CONFERENCE WL Pct GB Connecticut 9 2 .818 — Chicago 7 2 .778 1 Indiana 5 4 .556 3 Atlanta 4 7 .364 5 New York 4 7 .364 5 Washington 2 7 .222 6 ------------------------------------------------------- Thursday's results Connecticut at Indiana, late New York at Minnesota, late Today's games San Antonio at Seattle, 7 p.m. Saturday's Games Chicago at Minnesota, 9:30 a.m. Indiana at Tulsa, 5 p.m. Los Angeles at Phoenix, 6 p.m. they do agree to play in the western hemisphere, there are no guarantees. The Nashville Preda- tors took a flier on Alexander Radulov in the 2004 Draft and eventually signed him to a contract. Radulov played two sea- sons with the Predators before signing a lucrative deal with the KHL's Salavat Yulaev Ufa. The mercurial Radulov eventu- ally returned to Nashville this spring, where he played sometimes unin- spired hockey. Sometimes, even when not to extend Radulov's contract. Though he could be one of the most high- MLB West Division National League WL Pct GB Dodgers 42 28 .600 — Giants 38 32 .543 4 Arizona 34 35 .493 7.5 Colorado 25 42 .373 15.5 San Diego 24 46 .343 18 East Division WL Pct GB Washington 39 27 .591 — New York 38 32 .543 3 Atlanta 37 32 .536 3.5 Miami 33 35 .485 7 Philadelphia33 37 .471 8 Central Division WL Pct GB Cincinnati 38 30 .559 — Pittsburgh 35 32 .522 2.5 St. Louis 35 35 .500 4 Milwaukee 32 37 .464 6.5 Houston 28 41 .406 10.5 Chicago 24 45 .348 14.5 ------------------------------------------------------- Thursday's results Colorado at Philadelphia, late Saturday's Games Chicago Cubs at Arizona, 7:10 p.m. The Predators decided straight year. The season was marked by Howard's request to be traded and his occasion- al expressions of dissat- isfaction with Van Gundy and Smith. Entering the final year of his contract, Howard has not with- drawn his trade request. ''Personally I look forward to sitting down with Dwight and sharing with him the vision and the direction we're going to go,'' Hennigan said, ''and I look for- ward to listening to what his thought process is and where his head's at. At the end of the day, we'll take it from there.'' As for hiring a new coach, Hennigan said ''we're going to be start- ing that process immedi- ately.'' He will look for a head coach to ''embrace player devel- opment'' and take a long-term approach. ''Simply put,'' Henni- gan said, ''our goal is to build an elite basketball operation, both on the court and off the court. profile players on a some- what underwhelming free agent market, Radulov appears set to head back to the KHL. To help entice the best players to stick around, the income tax rates for top Russian play- ers is decidedly lower — 13 percent — than what they would face in the U.S. or Canada. Throw in the NHL salary cap and the rookie wage scale — which does not exist in the KHL — and it's no wonder Devine called selecting a Russian ''risky.'' offended by the notion, but then again every situa- tion is unique. Though his surname is packed with consonants and his parents are both Russian, the 18- year-old Galchenyuk was born in Milwaukee. Technically, he's American even though he's spent the majority of his childhood hopscotch- ing across the globe depending on where the playing career of his father Alex Sr. took the family. ''I don't even have my Russian passport any- more,'' Galchenyuk said with a laugh. ''I'm an Galchenyuk isn't MLB West Division Texas American League WL Pct GB 43 27 .614 — Angels 38 32 .543 5 Athletics 34 36 .486 9 Seattle 30 41 .423 13.5 East Division WL Pct GB New York 41 27 .603 — Baltimore 39 30 .565 2.5 Tampa Bay 38 30 .559 3 Boston 35 33 .515 6 Toronto 35 34 .507 6.5 Central Division WL Pct GB Cleveland 36 32 .529 — Chicago 36 33 .522 .5 Detroit 34 35 .493 2.5 Kansas City31 36 .463 4.5 Minnesota 27 40 .403 8.5 ------------------------------------------------------- Thursday's Games Detroit 2, St. Louis 1, 10 innings Oakland 4, L.A. Dodgers 1 Minnesota at Pittsburgh, late Tampa Bay at Washington, late Miami at Boston, late Today's games Detroit (Fister 1-3) at Pittsburgh (A.J.Bur- nett 7-2), 4:05 p.m. Tampa Bay (Shields 7-4) at Philadelphia (Cl.Lee 0-3), 4:05 p.m. Washington (Zimmermann 3-5) at Balti- more (Hammel 7-2), 4:05 p.m. Atlanta (Jurrjens 0-2) at Boston (Lester 4-4), 4:10 p.m. Minnesota (Blackburn 3-4) at Cincinnati (Bailey 5-4), 4:10 p.m. N.Y.Yankees (Pettitte 3-2) at N.Y. Mets (Niese 4-3), 4:10 p.m. Toronto (R.Romero 7-1) at Miami (A.Sanchez 3-5), 4:10 p.m. Cleveland (Jimenez 6-5) at Houston (Harrell 6-5), 5:05 p.m. Colorado (Friedrich 4-3) at Texas (Oswalt 0-0), 5:05 p.m. Milwaukee (Greinke 7-2) at Chicago White Sox (Sale 8-2), 5:10 p.m. St. Louis (J.Kelly 0-0) at Kansas City (Mazzaro 3-1), 5:10 p.m. L.A. Dodgers (Billingsley 4-5) at L.A. Angels (Haren 4-7), 7:05 p.m. San Francisco (Lincecum 2-8) at Oak- land (J.Parker 3-3), 7:05 p.m. Seattle (Millwood 3-5) at San Diego (Richard 4-7), 7:05 p.m. Saturday's games Toronto at Miami, 10:10 a.m. St. Louis at Kansas City, 11:10 a.m. Colorado at Texas, 12:05 p.m. Cleveland at Houston, 1:05 p.m. Detroit at Pittsburgh, 1:05 p.m. Tampa Bay at Philadelphia, 1:05 p.m. Minnesota at Cincinnati, 1:10 p.m. Atlanta at Boston, 4:15 p.m. L.A. Dodgers at L.A. Angels, 4:15 p.m. Milwaukee at Chicago White Sox, 4:15 p.m. N.Y.Yankees at N.Y. Mets, 4:15 p.m. San Francisco at Oakland, 4:15 p.m. Washington at Baltimore, 4:15 p.m. Seattle at San Diego, 7:05 p.m.