No. 12 Wisconsin Toughs Out Win Over FSU

MADISON, Wis. - Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan thought Alando Tucker might be tentative after he was poked so hard in the right eye that he was left bleeding. Tucker didn't waste any time putting Ryan at ease.

The Badgers' leading scorer hit a 3-pointer as soon as he got back on the floor en route to 22 points, including 18 after the poke, and No. 12 Wisconsin beat Florida State 81-66 on Tuesday night in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge.

"I was surprised he took it," Ryan said of the attempt. "I thought he'd at least get used to the lights after he got back in, but that was huge."

Tucker, who briefly sported a patch in the locker room after the game, was not available for …

NIreland riots after police arrest 3 over killings

Irish nationalist gangs hurled gasoline bombs at police Saturday after three alleged IRA dissidents were arrested on suspicion of killing two British soldiers in an attack designed to trigger wider violence in Northern Ireland.

Police operating in armored cars and flame-retardant suits said none of their officers was injured during the rising mob violence in the Irish Catholic end of Lurgan, a religiously divided town southwest of Belfast. Rioters also blocked the main Belfast-to-Dublin railway line that runs alongside the hardline Kilwilkie neighborhood of the town.

Later, police said they arrested a 37-year-old man and 30-year-old woman, and seized a gun …

Men turn to action books

NEW YORK Virtue triumphs. Flag-waving is crucial. Action prevailsand the good guy always wins.

With easily identifiable and universally sleazy bad guys - drugdealers, Middle East terrorists and dirty commies, to name just a few- these might be the elements of the latest "Rambo" movie. In factthey're the formula for a genre of books that has invaded the marketwith the force of, well, The Avenger, The Cutthroat Cannibals andCody's Army.

Welcome to men's action-adventure fiction, a specialty in which16 publishers now compete in the marketplace with 66 differentseries. Last year, the classification represented 4.3 percent ofsales for the U.S. paperback market. One …

US works to secure networks as hackers advance

WASHINGTON (AP) — It will take several more years for the U.S. government to fully install high-tech systems to block computer intrusions, a drawn-out timeline that enables criminals to become more adept at stealing sensitive data, experts say.

As the Department of Homeland Security moves methodically to pare down and secure the approximately 2,400 network connections used every day by millions of federal workers around the world, experts suggest that technology already may be passing them by.

The department that's responsible for securing government systems other than military sites is slowly moving all the government's Internet and e-mail traffic into secure networks that …

Paraguay to reverse support for Taiwan at UN

Paraguay will reverse its historic support for Taiwan at the upcoming United Nations General Assembly, and also is reconsidering its relations with communist regimes.

President Fernando Lugo said his government wants to maintain diplomatic relations with all countries of similar interests.

"Paraguay's foreign policy will be independent under my government and will not accept conditions," Lugo said in a local television interview Sunday.

Paraguay, the last South American country to recognize Taiwan, has supported the island since 1957, voting every year in support of resolutions to admit Taiwan to the assembly. Nations that recognize …

NBA Leaders

G FG FT PTS AVG

Wade, Mia. 68 734 497 2037 30.0

James, Clev. 70 688 512 1999 28.6

Bryant, LAL 69 699 416 1909 27.7

Durant, OKC. 62 577 371 1609 26.0

Nowitzki, Dall. 69 654 396 1757 25.5

Granger, Ind. 56 454 328 1386 24.8

Roy, Port. 66 549 362 1529 23.2

Bosh, Tor. 65 513 437 1473 22.7

Harris, N.J. 60 417 460 1354 22.6

Paul, N.O. 65 508 379 1444 22.2

Jamison, Wash. 71 586 300 1566 22.1

Johnson, Atl. 68 541 261 1471 21.6

Parker, S.A. 59 512 224 1265 21.4

Carter, N.J. 69 519 293 1463 21.2

Howard, Orl. 67 479 442 1400 20.9

Gordon, Chi. 70 499 282 1427 20.4

Pierce, Bos. 71 466 407 1439 20.3

West, N.O. 63 475 308 1263 20.0

Harrington, N.Y 60 437 184 1197 20.0

Duncan, S.A. 64 492 285 1269 19.8

FG Percentage

FG FGA PCT

O'Neal, Phoe. 434 709 .612

Nene, Den. 373 618 .604

Biedrins, G.S. 295 513 .575

Howard, Orl. 479 833 .575

Gasol, LAL 493 865 .570

Okafor, Char. 384 687 .559

Bynum, LAL 254 455 .558

Lee, N.Y. 438 797 .550

Yao, Hou. 495 902 .549

Stoudemire, Phoe. 404 749 .539

Rebounds

G OFF DEF TOT AVG

Howard, Orl. 67 289 643 932 13.9

Lee, N.Y. 68 218 591 809 11.9

Murphy, Ind. 65 124 641 765 11.8

Duncan, S.A. 64 169 509 678 10.6

Okafor, Char. 70 234 478 712 10.2

Yao, Hou. 68 176 480 656 9.6

Bosh, Tor. 65 170 448 618 9.5

Gasol, LAL 68 223 417 640 9.4

Jamison, Wash. 71 177 466 643 9.1

Millsap, Utah 63 220 348 568 9.0

Assists

G AST AVG

Paul, N.O. 65 709 10.9

Williams, Utah 55 579 10.5

Nash, Phoe. 61 587 9.6

Calderon, Tor. 56 479 8.6

Rondo, Bos. 69 589 8.5

Kidd, Dall. 70 582 8.3

B. Davis, LAC 55 441 8.0

Wade, Mia. 68 515 7.6

Duhon, N.Y. 66 487 7.4

James, Clev. 70 508 7.3

US Airways Makes $8B Bid for Delta

TEMPE, Ariz. - US Airways Group Inc. said Wednesday it has made an $8 billion cash and stock offer for Delta Airlines Inc. in a deal that would create one of the world's largest airlines.

The offer to buy Delta once the Atlanta-based airline emerges from bankruptcy protection would give Delta's unsecured creditors $4 billion in cash and 78.5 million shares of US Airways stock.

If completed, the airline would operate under the Delta name and serve more than 350 destinations across five continents.