NBA-DL

Flash top D-Fenders

LOS ANGELES -- Dontell Jefferson scored 25 points and Kyrylo Fesenko recorded a double-double as the Utah Flash defeated the Los Angeles D-Fenders, 110-100, in NBA Development League action Friday at the Staples Center. The win was the second for the Flash over Los Angeles in as many days, with Utah closing out the D-League Showcase with a victory over the D-Fenders at the McKay Events Center in Orem on Thursday.

Utah improved to 9-8, while L.A. fell to 4-12.

"I am really proud of our guys for doing the things we needed to do after a tough turn-around," Flash coach Brad Jones said. "That's three games in four days and three wins. Can't ask for much more than that."

After getting behind thanks to foul trouble in the first quarter, Utah rallied to take a 55-47 lead at the half. The Flash limited the D-Fenders to just 5-of-21 from the floor in the second period. Los Angeles cut the Flash lead to 76-75 after three quarters, but Utah wouldn't allow the D-Fenders to close the deal down the stretch. Jefferson added seven rebounds and four assists to his 25 points. Playing in his third game since being assigned to the Flash from the Utah Jazz, Fesenko scored 17 points and collected 13 rebounds in just 24 minutes. Gavin Grant chipped in 14 for the Flash, followed by Ryan Diggs with 11 and Carlos Wheeler with 10.

Joe Crawford scored a D-Fenders franchise record 44 points to lead Los Angeles.

College Football

WSU football player gets 60 days in jail

FARMINGTON -- A Weber State University football player has been sentenced to 60 days in jail and ordered to pay restitution in two separate cases.

Bryant Eteuati, 21, pleaded guilty in November to two class A misdemeanor charges for reckless endangerment and failure to remain at the scene of an accident. Prosecutors said Eteuati was part of a group of people watching a fight on July 1 when he was attacked. They say he swerved his car into a group of people while leaving, causing injury. In a separate case from 2006, police said Eteuati helped his friends shoplift from a store where he worked. He pleaded guilty to misdemeanor communications fraud. Second District Judge Thomas L. Kay on Thursday refused Eteuati's request for work release to finish the semester.

"We were very disappointed with the sentence," Eteuati's attorney, Deven Coggins, said Friday.

Coggins said they urged the judge to allow Eteuati to complete his college education and be in a better position to pay restitution "but for whatever reason the judge felt he didn't want to follow that."

• Bowden returns for 34th season: Florida State coach Bobby Bowden is coming back for his 34th season at the school. Bowden, who earns slightly more than $2 million annually, said Friday the details of his new contract are being finalized. The 79-year-old coach also said his longtime defensive coordinator, Mickey Andrews, will return as well.

Bowden's 382 career wins are one fewer than those of Penn State's 82-year-old Joe Paterno, now the winningest coach in major college history.

Although he's long been on the record as striving for 400 coaching wins, Bowden said he'd prefer to stay away from numbers.

• Texas Tech receiver, Alambama back headed to NFL: Michael Crabtree's father says the Texas Tech receiver is going to the NFL, according to a newspaper report. His father, also named Michael Crabtree, told the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal on Friday that draft projections in the top 10 were too good to pass up. His dad says a nagging ankle problem in 2008 raised concerns about bigger injuries next season.

Also, Alabama running back Glen Coffee will skip his senior season to enter the NFL draft after a breakout season with the Crimson Tide. Coffee announced his decision Friday, following star offensive lineman Andre Smith into professional football.

Winter Sports

Pikus-Pace finishes ninth

KÃñNIGSSEE, Germany -- The women's skeleton World Cup tour reconvened after the holiday break on Friday. Noelle Pikus-Pace of Eagle Mountain was the highest U.S. finisher in ninth (out of 23 sleds) on one of the most difficult tracks on the international circuit.

"You need to feel the flow of the curves and be rhythmic on this track," said Pikus-Pace. "If you're not, then it will compound all the way down. There are unique curve combinations on this course that you can't lose your focus on."

Pikus-Pace led the U.S. women with a two-run total of one minute, 40.22 seconds after sliding runs of 50.31 and 49.91 seconds.

"It's taking me some time to get back into sliding after taking a season off," said Pikus-Pace, who took a year off when she had her first child. "I didn't think it w ould be this hard to get back into competitive mode, but I'm learning every day and trying to get back to where I need to be mentally."

NBA

Barkley to take leave of absence

Charles Barkley is taking a leave of absence from the broadcast booth.

The announcement by Turner Sports came Friday, hours after police said the 45-year-old former NBA star was legally drunk when he was arrested Dec. 31 on suspicion of drunken driving in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Test results show Barkley had a blood-alcohol level of .149 percent, nearly twice the legal limit of .08 percent in Arizona.

Barkley will be off the air for a minimum of several weeks, and no return date has been set, a person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press. The person requested anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss it.