UT MARTIN, MOREHEAD ADVANCE TO OVC SEMIFINALS
The OVC Soccer Tournament got underway yesterday at Campus sites. Third seeded UT Martin edged sixth seeded Tennessee Tech 2-1, and fourth seeded Morehead edged fifth seeded Eastern Illinois 2-1. The tournament now moves to Murray State's Cutchin Field for semifinal action Friday with second seeded Eastern Kentucky battling UT Martin Friday morning at 10, and top seed Murray State playing Morehead at 1pm. The championship is Sunday at 1.

SURGERY FOR CARPENTER
The St. Louis Cardinals announced that pitcher Chris Carpenter underwent surgery on his right elbow yesterday in a procedure that included decompression and transposition of the ulnar nerve. The surgery, which was performed by Cardinals' team physician Dr. George Paletta, was the same procedure that Albert Pujols underwent on Oct. 13. The decision to perform surgery was based upon recent symptoms that Carpenter was experiencing and it is not expected to interfere with or prolong his current shoulder therapy and rehabilitation. Carpenter made four appearances for the Cardinals this past season - the last coming on Sept. 2.

MULDER AND IZZY FILE FOR FREE AGENCY
Starting pitcher Mark Mulder is now the eighth Cardinal to file for free agency this off-season. This comes after Cardinals officials said they would not pick up his $11-million option for 2009. Mulder made just six appearances over the last two years for St. Louis, going 0-and-3 in that span. Closer Jason Isringhausen also filed for free agency yesterday.

VOLS COORIDINATORS SURPRISED BY FULMER DECISION
Tennessee Vols coordinators Dave Clawson and John Chavis expressed surprise Tuesday, in their first public comments since the announcement that head coach Phillip Fulmer will leave at the end of the season. Chavis, who coaches the defense, says that while he would like to be a candidate for the head coaching job, he expects athletic director Mike Hamilton will look outside the university for the next coach. Clawson, the offensive coordinator, says he's surprised that a man with Fulmer's record would be fired, less than a year after he took the Vols to the SEC title game. Fulmer leaves after 17 seasons as head coach, and 30 years at Tennessee, as a player and coach.

TITANS FACE DIFFICULT SECOND HALF
With five road games in their last eight, the undefeated Tennessee Titans are gearing up for a tough stretch run to the 2008 NFL season. The 8-and-0 Titans play the first of consecutive road games at Chicago Sunday, and players and coaches alike say they know they will get each team's best effort the rest of the way. Next week, the Titans head to Jacksonville for a rematch of their week one win over the Jaguars in Nashville. During coach Jeff Fisher's tenure, the Titans have been one of the better road teams in the league. Remaining road games include Detroit, Houston, and Indianapolis, while the Jets, Browns, and Steelers will play in Nashville. Sunday's game against the Bears kicks off at 3:15. Airtime is 2pm on 1340 WNBS with Titans Pre-Game.

NATIONAL SPORTS REPORT

Tuesday's Results
-----------------

National Basketball Association
-------------------------------
Dirk Nowitzki had 30 points, seven rebounds and three assists, while Jason
Terry, in his first start of the year, added 29 points, six assists and three
rebounds to lead the Dallas Mavericks in a 98-81 rout of the San Antonio Spurs
at the AT&T Center. Josh Howard had 14 points and 12 boards for the Mavs, who
have alternated wins and losses in their first four games of the season. Jason
Kidd chipped in nine points, 10 assists and eight boards in the win. Tony
Parker had 22 points for the Spurs, who fell to 0-3 on the season which is
their worst start since the 1973-74 season, when the club started 0-4. Tim
Duncan had 19 points and 15 boards in defeat. Roger Mason had 11 points off
the bench and George Hill, making his NBA debut, had 11 points.

Elsewhere in the NBA:
---------------------
Phoenix Suns 114, New Jersey Nets 86
Boston Celtics 103, Houston Rockets 99


National Hockey League
----------------------
Jamie McGinn and Ryane Clowe scored 2:14 apart early in the third period, and
the Sharks piled 49 shots on net in a 3-1 victory over the Minnesota Wild to
remain the lone unbeaten team at home this season. Evgeni Nabokov stopped 23
shots for San Jose, which moved to 7-0 at home and leads the NHL with 22
points. Nabokov has been in net for all seven wins as the host. Dating back to
last season, the Sharks have won 12 consecutive home contests and have posted
at least one point in their last 16 home games.

Elsewhere in the NHL:
---------------------
New York Islanders 2, New York Rangers 1
Carolina Hurricanes 5, Toronto Maple Leafs 4 (OT)
Ottawa Senators 2, Washington Capitals 1 (OT)
Phoenix Coyotes 4, Calgary Flames 2
Vancouver Canucks 4, Nashville Predators 0
Anaheim Ducks 1, Los Angeles Kings 0 (OT)


=== MLB ===

Ken Griffey Jr. was one of nine players to file for free agency on Tuesday.
One of the greatest sluggers in league history and a sure-fire Hall of Famer,
Griffey, who will turn 39 later this month, combined to hit .249 with 18 home
runs and 71 RBI in 143 games last season with Cincinnati and the AL Central
champion Chicago White Sox. The veteran outfielder was acquired from the Reds
on July 31 in exchange for pitcher Nick Masset and minor-league infielder
Danny Richar. The 1997 AL MVP and a 13-time All-Star, Griffey ranks fifth on
the all-time home run list with 611. He is also a career .288 hitter and has
driven in 1,772 runs during his 20-year career with the Mariners, Reds and
White Sox. Atlanta pitcher Elmer Dessens, Baltimore shortstop Juan Castro,
Boston pitcher Mike Timlin, Florida outfielder Luis Gonzalez, Dodgers catcher
Gary Bennett, Mets outfielder Trot Nixon, St. Louis pitcher Mark Mulder and
Tampa Bay outfielder Cliff Floyd rounded out the other eight players who filed
on Tuesday.

===

The New York Yankees have declined their options on first baseman Jason Giambi
and pitcher Carl Pavano, making each player a free agent. The 37-year-old
Giambi hit .247 with 19 doubles, 32 home runs and 96 RBI in 145 games with the
Yankees this past season. He ranked second on the team in home runs, notching
his eighth career 30-homer season. Giambi ranks 10th on the Yankees' all-time
homer list with 209. The oft-injured Pavano was 4-2 with a 5.77 ERA in seven
starts with New York in 2008. The 32-year-old righty made his first start
since April 9, 2007 on August 23 after recovering from Tommy John surgery. In
his four seasons in the Bronx (2005-2008), Pavano went 9-8 with a 5.00 ERA in
just 26 starts.

===

Toronto Blue Jays pitcher A.J. Burnett will opt out of the final two years of
a five-year, $55 million deal he signed with the club before the 2006 season.
Burnett's agent, Darek Braunecker, met with team officials at the general
managers meetings in California to inform the club of Burnett's decision. The
pitcher was scheduled to make $24 million over the final two years of the
contract. The 31-year-old posted an 18-10 record with a 4.07 earned run
average in 2008, when he started a career-high 34 games. He also struck out an
American League- best and career-high 231 batters. Blue Jays general manager
J.P. Ricciardi has indicated that Toronto may discuss a new contract for
Burnett. For his 10-year career, which started with seven years with the
Florida Marlins, Burnett has an 87-76 record with a 3.81 ERA.


=== NHL ===

New Jersey Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur will undergo surgery to repair the
distal biceps in his left elbow, the club announced Tuesday. The procedure is
set to take place on Thursday, announced general manager Lou Lamoriello, who
added that the Devils will not make further comment or update until the
surgery is complete. However, a Newark newspaper on Tuesday quoted Lamoriello
as saying it could take "anywhere from 3-4 months" before Brodeur can return
to the ice. Brodeur suffered the injury in Saturday's 6-1 win against Atlanta.
The four- time Vezina Trophy winner skated off the ice in the second period.
He first appeared to hurt his elbow reaching for a shot and soon after fell to
the ice clutching his left arm. He stopped all five shots he faced before
exiting and was credited with the victory, leaving him seven wins shy of
Patrick Roy's all-time mark of 551. Brodeur saw his streak of consecutive
regular-season starts end at a career-high 51 games dating back to January 8
of last season. Brodeur had made 56 straight starts including the playoffs.
Brodeur's absence leaves the Devils with Kevin Weekes, who replaced Brodeur in
the New Jersey net Saturday. Weekes has a career 98-159-33-6 record with 2.89
goals-against-average.


=== NFL ===

The Detroit Lions have signed free-agent quarterback Daunte Culpepper to a
two-year contract, it was announced Tuesday. No other terms of the contract
were disclosed. The deal comes two days after the Lions dropped a 27-23 game
against Chicago to move to 0-8 on the season. Detroit is now the last team in
the NFL without a victory as the previously winless Cincinnati Bengals
knocked off the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday. Culpepper, 31, most
recently played for the Oakland Raiders in 2007, when he appeared in seven
games for the club. He threw only five touchdown passes in that span for a
quarterback rating of 78.0. In nine seasons, the Central Florida product has
thrown for 22,422 yards along with 142 touchdowns and 94 interceptions.
Culpepper's best season came in 2004 as a member of the Vikings, when he
threw for 4,717 yards, 39 touchdowns and only 11 interceptions for a 110.9
quarterback rating. He has also run for 2,536 yards and 33 touchdowns in his
career.

===

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger had an MRI exam done on his
injured right shoulder, but the team is still waiting for the results.
Roethlisberger underwent the exam on Tuesday, and head coach Mike Tomlin will
await for the results before deciding what course of action he will take in
preparation for Sunday's game against Indianapolis. Roethlisberger injured his
right shoulder in the second quarter of Monday's 23-6 victory against
Washington, and backup quarterback Byron Leftwich came into the game to start
the third quarter against the Redskins. Roethlisberger completed just 5-of-17
passes for 50 yards and an interception, missing on 11 of his first 12 passes.
He also ran for a score. Leftwich entered and energized the Steelers offense,
completing 7-of-10 passes for 129 yards and a touchdown.


=== NBA ===

A day after being traded, Allen Iverson was introduced as the newest member of
the Detroit Pistons Tuesday at a press conference. Iverson was acquired Monday
in a trade that sent Chauncey Billups, Antonio McDyess, and Cheikh Samb to
Denver. Iverson is averaging 18.7 points and 6.7 assists through three games
this season. The 33-year-old is in his 13th NBA season and has compiled 27.7
points and 3.8 rebounds per contest over 832 career games with Philadelphia
and Denver.


=== COLLEGE FOOTBALL ===

Penn State starting quarterback Daryll Clark will play Saturday at Iowa after
sustaining a concussion on October 25 in the Nittany Lions' 13-6 victory over
Ohio State. Clark has thrown for 1,652 yards and 11 touchdowns in leading PSU
to an unblemished 9-0 record and the third spot in the Bowl Championship
Series rankings. Clark is trying to guide Penn State to its first-ever BCS
title game; the Lions last won a national title in 1986. Texas Tech (9-0) and
Alabama (9-0) currently sit second and first, respectively, in the BCS
rankings ahead of Penn State.

===

One of six unbeaten teams left in the nation, 16th-ranked Ball State takes to
the field Wednesday night by hosting the Northern Illinois Huskies in Mid-
American Conference action. The Cardinals have opened the 2008 season with
eight straight victories, which marks the best start for a Ball State team
since a 9-0 jaunt in 1965. Even more impressive though is Ball State has won
its eight games by an average of 22 points and the Cardinals defense has
allowed 20 points or fewer in five straight games.