Milton-Jones to Coach Men’s Team in ABA

Olympic gold medalist and WNBA standout DeLisha Milton-Jones was named interim coach of the Los Angeles Stars of the American Basketball Assn. on Tuesday, becoming the second woman head coach of a men’s professional basketball team.

The Stars hired Milton-Jones last month to be an assistant coach. Her husband, Roland Jones, is a reserve point guard with the team.

“DeLisha has a terrific understanding of the game and has been making a great impact on the team with her knowledge, wisdom and leadership,” Star executive Lowell Moore said. “Ashley McElhiney in Nashville has proven that women can, indeed, be successful in a man’s game. We have no doubt that DeLisha will be great also.”

McElhiney, the coach of the ABA’s Nashville Rhythm, is the other woman coach of a men’s pro basketball team. Nashville is 12-3 and in second place in the 12-team Blue Division.

Milton-Jones, 30, was a member of the U.S. women’s team that won a gold medal at the 2000 Olympics. She played six seasons with the Sparks and was a WNBA All-Star in 2000.

Milton-Jones’ first game as interim coach is Saturday night at Utah, which is 17-0.

Milton-Jones succeeds Burell Lee, who resigned after guiding the first-year team to a 6-7 record.

Motor Racing

Two-time NASCAR champion Terry Labonte has included a variety of tracks in his 10-race 2005 schedule, everything from the half-mile oval at Bristol, Tenn., to the 2 1/2 -mile track at Indianapolis.

Labonte, who announced plans in October to drive partial Nextel Cup schedules with Hendrick Motorsports in 2005 and 2006, will skip the season-opening Daytona 500 on Feb. 20 and begin his racing season Feb. 27 at California Speedway in Fontana.

Italian motorcyclist Fabrizio Meoni, 47, was killed in a crash during the Dakar Rally in Senegal, race organizers said.

It was the second fatality in two days.

Spanish motorcyclist Jose Manuel Perez died Monday in a Spanish hospital from injuries sustained in a crash last Thursday.

Tennis

French Open champion Anastasia Myskina was knocked out of the Medibank Sydney International in Australia, losing to Peng Shuai, 6-1, 6-3, in a second-round match.

Lindsay Davenport advanced to the quarterfinals with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Nathalie Dechy.

In men’s matches, Lleyton Hewitt advanced with a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Karol Beck. Andrei Pavel defeated Luke Bourgeois, 7-6 (3), 7-5, and Michael Llodra defeated Xavier Malisse, 4-6, 6-0, 6-3.

The U.S. Fed Cup team’s quarterfinal against Belgium on April 23-24 will be in Delray Beach, Fla., the U.S. Tennis Assn. announced.

Olympics

The International Olympic Committee called off a proposed TV debate in London with officials from the five candidates to play host to the 2012 Summer Games, saying that the show would violate bidding rules.

The IOC will select the host city July 6 in Singapore.

Winter Sports

Bode Miller, trying to become the first American to win the World Cup title since Phil Mahre in 1983, took over the top spot in giant slalom by finishing second to Italy’s Massimiliano Blardone in Adelboden, Switzerland.

Miller leads the overall standings with 988 points, followed by Austrians Benjamin Raich (690) and Hermann Maier (551). The U.S. skier leads the giant slalom standings with 340 points, followed by Canadian Thomas Grandi (302) and Blardone (266).

Miscellany

Conference USA announced a six-year deal with ESPN to have the league’s football and men’s and women’s basketball games broadcast by the network. The deal runs through 2010-11. The league also announced a deal with College Sports Television to have more than 50 football games a season televised by the network.

U.S. Ryder Cup captain Tom Lehman picked Corey Pavin and Loren Roberts as assistants for the 2006 team.

Chicago of Major League Soccer announced the signing of midfielder John Thorrington, 25, to a multiyear contract. Thorrington is a native of Palos Verdes and has spent his pro career in Europe.

T.J. Simers is on vacation.