Today's Sports

ALBUQUERQUE – In previous seasons, the Albuquerque Isotopes have been all about power.

The Isotopes, the Triple-A franchise of the Los Angeles Dodgers, have long been built to slug it out with the high-scoring teams of the Pacific Coast League.

This season, however, the Isotopes may have to find other ways to win.

Albuquerque will open its 11th season at home Thursday night when it takes on the Iowa Cubs. Game time is 6:35 p.m.

The Isotopes will host the Cubs for four games, followed by a four-game set against Omaha to start the 2013 season.

It’s a new-look Isotopes this season and third-year skipper Lorenzo Bundy is hoping to improve on a playoff berth and opening-round loss to Omaha in the 2012 postseason.

But gone from that team are two of its biggest performers off last season, slugger Jerry Sands and hurler John Ely, the PCL Pitcher of the Year.

The star of this team is Dee Gordon, although for how long Gordon will be with the Isotopes is a matter of some conjecture.

Gordon, a shortstop, appeared in 87 games with the Dodgers, hitting .228 during that time. Going into 2013, it was unknown whether Gordon would return to the Isotopes, where he’s played off-and-on since 2011.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico didn't have to look far to find its next head coach.

Craig Neal, who spent the past six seasons as the team's top assistant, was hired Tuesday to replace Steve Alford.

Athletic director Paul Krebs made the announcement in a one-word tweet: "Noodles," a reference to Neal's nickname. The university confirmed that Neal would be introduced as UNM's 20th head basketball coach during a news conference Wednesday.

As assistant head coach under Alford, Neal helped the Lobos win back-to-back Mountain West Conference titles and reach three NCAA tournaments.

Players and fans had voiced their support for Neal as the top choice after Alford revealed last weekend that he was leaving for UCLA. Emotions were raw the last few days, but Krebs' announcement helped dissolve some of the uncertainty and disappointment that was sparked by Alford's departure.

While Krebs was guarded about the future of the head coaching spot on Saturday, he said during a news conference that Neal was a candidate and would provide continuity and stability for the program.

The Los Alamos Hilltopper softball team went 1-2 in last weekend’s Kristin Griego Invitational tournament.
Los Alamos lost to host Rio Rancho in the opening round. It came back top Navajo Prep to move into the fifth-place game of the tournament before losing to Churchill, a team from Eugene, Ore.
The three tournament games were the final three games for the Hilltoppers before they start District 2-4A play. The Hilltoppers will be at Bernalillo Wednesday afternoon.
Los Alamos (3-9) fell to Rio Rancho 17-9 Friday morning. In that contest, Los Alamos pounded out 11 hits, one of its best totals of the season, but even that wouldn’t be enough to hang with the Rams (8-8), who are averaging about 8.2 runs per game.
The Rams scored 6 runs in the third inning and 4 in the sixth to win.
In the late game Friday, Los Alamos won 11-1 over Navajo Prep, a Class A-2A school to advance to the fifth-place contest. But Churchill’s Lancers (5-3) took Los Alamos’ final tournament game handily, earning a 12-2 win.
Los Alamos has dropped four of its last five contests and six of its previous eight heading into Wednesday’s game with Bernalillo. Bernalillo (5-0-1) is unofficially ranked No. 7 among Class 4A teams in the state and is the highest rated District 2-4A team in the statewide rankings.

Kevin Ware is already up and walking, and he's got a nice souvenir to keep him company until he's cleared to return to Louisville.
Cardinals coach Rick Pitino brought the Midwest Regional championship trophy when he visited Ware, who remains hospitalized after surgery to repair a gruesome fracture in his right leg.
"He was real excited about (the trophy)," Pitino said after visiting Ware again Monday morning. "I said to him, 'You want me to bring it back or stay with you?' He said, 'It's staying with me.' I said, 'All right, just make sure you don't lose it.'"
During a 2-hour surgery Sunday night, doctors reset Ware's broken tibia and inserted a rod into the bone. Because the bone broke through the skin, Pitino said doctors are monitoring Ware to make sure no infection develops. If there are no complications, he should be released Tuesday.
The Cardinals plan to leave for the Final Four in Atlanta on Wednesday night, and Pitino said they expect to have Ware with them. Ware is originally from New York City, but he moved to the Atlanta area before high school.
"He gets to go home, be with his family and be with us on the bench," Pitino said. "He's in very good spirits and anxious to get out of the hospital and get back with the guys."