Bryant decides against finger surgery

Kobe Bryant will not have surgery on his right pinkie because recovery would take too long. Bryant has played with damaged ligaments since February, but said yesterday he won't have surgery after seeking opinions from hand specialists. "When the doctors told me recovery from a procedure could be 12 weeks, I just decided now was not the time to have surgery," Bryant said on the website kb24.com. "What it really came down to for me is that I just didn't want to miss any time 'punching the clock' for the Lakers, given all we are trying to accomplish as a team this NBA season." . . . 76ers coach Maurice Cheeks agreed to a second contract extension in seven months. He agreed to a one-year extension in February that took him through the upcoming season. Terms of the deal were not disclosed . . . Tina Thompson scored 21 points to lift host Houston to a 75-68 win over the Connecticut Sun, who were led by Asjha Jones's 22 points . . . Deanna Nolan scored 18 points to lift the Detroit Shock past visiting Phoenix, 89-78 . . . Minnesota star Seimone Augustus left the Lynx's 86-76 victory over visiting Indiana after suffering a head injury in the first quarter . . . Becky Hammon scored 30 points to lead San Antonio to an 82-76 victory over the Liberty at New York . . . Jia Perkins scored 17 points to spark Chicago to a 78-59 win over the Mystics.

Ohio State tailback Chris "Beanie" Wells has been given the OK to play in Saturday night's showdown at No. 1 Southern Cal. Wells, who rushed for 1,609 yards and 15 touchdowns a year ago, went down with a foot injury in the second half of the fifth-ranked Buckeyes' opener against Youngstown State and did not suit up last Saturday against Ohio University . . . Minnesota running back Duane Bennett will miss the rest of the season because of a knee injury. The Gophers' leading rusher tore a ligament in Saturday's victory over Bowling Green . . . Monitoring the progress of Hurricane Ike, Louisiana State athletic director Joe Alleva said he will announce today where the Tigers' game Saturday against North Texas will be played.

James Blake was left off the defending champion US Davis Cup team because of exhaustion and replaced by Sam Querrey. The best-of-five semifinal series against Spain will be played outdoors on clay Sept. 19-21 in Madrid. Andy Roddick and doubles specialists Bob and Mike Bryan round out the US team selected by captain Patrick McEnroe. "James is just exhausted physically and mentally after a grueling summer," McEnroe said. "He said he needed a break and we respect that. This is also a great opportunity for Sam, who has had a solid year, strong results on clay and has been a loyal practice partner for this team." . . . Television ratings were down for the US Open men's final after rain forced the match to move from Sunday to Monday. Roger Federer's straight-set win over Andy Murray drew a 1.9 national rating on CBS and a 4 share. That's down 49 percent from last year's 3.7/7.

Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols told St. Louis television station WSDK that he's considering reconstructive surgery on his right elbow in the offseason, which could sideline him for the start to the 2009 season. Pujols said he's thinking about surgery to correct the ligament damage, which was diagnosed last winter . . . White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said slugger Carlos Quentin could return from his broken wrist in time for the postseason. The All-Star left fielder had surgery on his right wrist Monday. "Hopefully, if we make the playoffs, we can count on him in the playoffs," said Guillen . . . Cubs manager Lou Piniella said pitchers Rich Harden and Carlos Zambrano remain on track for starts tomorrow and Friday, respectively. Harden missed a start with discomfort in his arm. Zambrano missed one turn with shoulder inflammation and rotator cuff tendinitis . . . Dontrelle Willis and Freddy Garcia will get starts for the Tigers next week. After spending most of the season at Single A working on his control, Willis will start at Texas Monday night. Garcia, who hasn't pitched in the majors since June 2007 while recovering from shoulder surgery, will start at Texas Sept. 17.

The Red Wings re-signed 46-year-old defenseman Chris Chelios for one year. Chelios enters his 25th NHL season and his 10th with Detroit. He began his career with the Canadiens and also played for the Blackhawks . . . Defenseman Keith Ballard agreed to a six-year contract extension with the Panthers . . . Boston College finalized its 2008-09 men's hockey schedule and the defending national champions will open against Wisconsin Oct. 10 at Conte Forum. The Eagles' first Hockey East game is at Northeastern Oct. 18, and they will face off at home against Notre Dame Nov. 7 . . . With more goals than minutes in the game, Slovakia's women's team claimed an amazing 82-0 victory over Bulgaria in Olympic qualifying. Slovakia outshot the Bulgarians, 139-0, during the 60-minute game, played in Latvia.

Unable to earn her card through sponsor exemptions, Michelle Wie has entered the LPGA Tour Qualifying School and will play the first stage next week at Mission Hills CC in Rancho Mirage, Calif., where she played in the final group of the Kraft Nabisco Championsip in 2003 at age 13 . . . Jack Kearney of East Longmeadow lost, 2 and 1, to Todd Mitchell of Bloomington, Ill., in the second round of the US Mid-Amateur at River Hills, Wis. Ricky Jones of Thomaston, Maine, was ousted by Jeffery Wilson of Fairfield, Calif., 3 and 2 . . . . . . Former Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight champ Evan Tanner died in the desert Monday east of San Diego, possibly of heat exposure. The 37-year-old Tanner was found about 2 miles from his campsite in a remote area of the Palo Verdes Mountains, where temperatures had reached 110 degrees.