sports in brief

Topeka Capital-Journal, The, Jul 30, 2008

Football: Ex-Wildcat Newman out three weeks

Dallas Cowboys cornerback Terence Newman will miss at least three weeks of practice because of a groin injury, another early setback for the player coming off his first Pro Bowl season.

Coach Wade Phillips said an MRI on Tuesday revealed a "significant" injury to Newman's left groin.

Newman was on the field in shorts and a T-shirt for the team's only practice Tuesday, like he was for afternoon practice Monday after he got hurt in the morning session that day. Newman was injured when he became tangled up with a receiver during a play and his leg twisted awkwardly.

This is the second year in a row Newman has been injured in the preseason. Last year, Newman was sidelined after the first preseason game because of a slight tear in the tissue in the base of his right foot. He missed the first two games of the regular season.

SEDRICK ELLIS, the New Orleans Saints' top draft pick last spring, ended his holdout Tuesday. Ellis, a defensive tackle picked seventh overall out of Southern California, agreed to a five-year contract, said Saints spokesman Greg Bensel.

REGGIE WILLIAMS, a receiver for the Jacksonville Jaguars, reinjured his right knee Tuesday night, hours after being activated.

During the evening practice, Williams made a spin move after a reception and hurt the knee. He limped to the sideline, was examined by team trainers and then carted off the field to the locker room for tests.

Daniel Sepulveda, a punter for the Pittsburgh Steelers, tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee for the second time in three years and is expected to miss the season.

Basketball: Rockets set to trade for troubled Artest

The Houston Rockets are close to an agreement to acquire Ron Artest from the Sacramento Kings, two people familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press.

The Rockets will give up guard Bobby Jackson, who played for the Kings from 2000-05, and another player -- likely rookie forward Donte Greene, according to two NBA people who confirmed the deal, but spoke on condition of anonymity because no official announcement had been made.

Artest's long-anticipated move out of Sacramento probably can't be announced yet because Greene, acquired by the Rockets on draft night, signed a contract with Houston on July 14. A player can't be traded within 30 days of signing a contract, according to league rules.

The 6-foot-7, 248-pound Artest averaged 20.5 points last season, his highest since 2004-05, when he averaged 24.5 for Indiana. He also grabbed 5.8 rebounds per game for Sacramento last season.

JAMAR SMITH, a junior guard at Illinois, may not return to the court in a few months as expected after a prosecutor said Tuesday she wants a judge to revoke his probation for allegedly drinking alcohol.

Smith is serving two years' probation after pleading guilty last year to felony driving under the influence causing great bodily harm. Under the terms of Smith's probation, he can't drink.

Champaign police allegedly spotted Smith outside a campus bar about 2:30 a.m. Friday while they broke up an argument, according to Champaign County State's Attorney Julia Rietz and a statement Tuesday from police.

Rietz said she wants to have a judge revoke the 21-year-old Smith's probation. If that happens, he could face anything from more stringent probation to up to 14 years in prison.

KAREEM RUSH signed with the Philadelphia 76ers as a free agent Tuesday to help bolster the team's 3-point shooting. The 6-foot-6, 215-pound Rush has averaged 6.8 points in five NBA seasons.

MAURICE EVANS, the former Wichita Collegiate standout, completed a deal with the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday. The 6-foot-5 Evans started 47 times for Orlando last season, averaging a career-high 9.3 points.

General: Little League WS to use instant replay

Little League Baseball will use instant replay at this year's World Series to review questionable home runs and other close plays at the outfield fence, beating the major leagues in instituting a system to review some disputed calls.

The limited replay system would be in place on an experimental basis when the 2008 tournament begins Aug. 15 and be reevaluated following the series, Little League president Stephen Keener said Tuesday.

Replay would be used "to overturn an obvious wrong," said Dennis Lewin, chairman of Little League's Board of Directors.

The rule limits replay to instances in which a batted ball "leaves the field of play at or near the outfield fence, or should have been ruled out of the field of play" at or near the fence.