IN BRIEF

GOLF

Late-comer Bertsch focuses on pro-am, leads Hope Classic

Shane Bertsch hopped out of his RV and excelled on a course he hadn't seen in more than 10 years, opening with a 10-under-par 62 Wednesday at the Hope Classic in La Quinta, Calif., for a two-stroke lead over Alex Prugh and Jeff Quinney.

Bertsch was the last player to register for the five-day, four-course tournament, yet he still posted the best round of his PGA Tour career.

Bertsch had 10 birdies without a bogey even while helping line up putts for his pro-am playing partners under intermittent rain and wind.

"I was just comfortable," Bertsch said. "I always like these formats, because I help the guys out, and it keeps me maybe not so focused on myself until it's time to hit, and then I just go and hit."

J.P. Hayes, George McNeill, Joe Ogilvie and Garrett Willis were three strokes back. Heath Slocum, who skipped last week's Sony Open while his wife gave birth, was in a large group at 6 under.

COLLEGES

Fitzgerald remembered as man who put Gonzaga on map

Dan Fitzgerald, the coach who built Gonzaga into a national basketball power but resigned before the school began its current NCAA Tournament run, has died at age 67.

Fitzgerald collapsed Tuesday evening in a Spokane, Wash., restaurant. The cause of death has not been released.

Fitzgerald recruited John Stockton to campus, took the Zags to their first NCAA Tournament in 1995 and built the coaching staff of Mark Few, Dan Monson and Bill Grier that has put the Zags in every NCAA Tournament since 1999.

Also: Connecticut's athletic director said Jim Calhoun's medical condition is not career threatening, but there is no timetable for his return.

Jeff Hathaway would not say what is ailing the 67-year-old Hall of Famer, but said it has nothing to do with his previous bouts with cancer and is not heart related.

The Lady Rebels were unable to hold a six-point lead in overtime and lost to Colorado State 66-65 in a Mountain West Conference basketball game at Cox Pavilion.

Colorado State went on a 9-2 run in the final 86 seconds. Kim Mestdagh capped the comeback by sinking a 3-pointer with nine seconds left to give the Rams the win.

Mia Bell's 3-point attempt at the buzzer for UNLV hit the front of the rim and fell short. UNLV (8-11, 1-4) lost its fourth straight to the Rams (10-7, 2-2).

A judge ruled that fired Texas Tech coach Mike Leach's lawsuit against the university can go forward but not as quickly as his attorneys wanted.

State District Judge William Sowder denied a motion by Leach's attorneys to speed up taking depositions from school administrators and obtaining documents relevant to the case.

"I see no reason to give Mr. Leach any special treatment in this case," the judge told the Lubbock, Texas, court. "So this case will take an ordinary course of action."

Louisiana Tech hired Arizona offensive coordinator Sonny Dykes to replace Derek Dooley as head coach.

Dykes has coached in college for 15 years and has been with Arizona since 2007, serving as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. He never has been a college head coach.

MISCELLANEOUS

Pacquiao ready to concentrate on Clottey, not Mayweather

Manny Pacquiao said he wishes he could have fought Floyd Mayweather Jr., even though he's stepping into the ring with the dangerous Joshua Clottey on March 13.

Pacquiao said he thinks Mayweather was looking for a way out of fighting him, and that "maybe Mayweather is scared to lose."

The Filipino champion will instead defend his version of the welterweight title against Clottey at the new Cowboys Stadium in Dallas.

Also: Officials at Santa Anita have canceled racing for today because of torrential rain that has battered Southern California the past few days.

Officials said they expect another 6 to 8 inches of rain in the next 24 hours, making the synthetic surface at Santa Anita unsuitable for live racing.

Hendrick Motorsports has added a second airplane to the Haitian earthquake relief effort, with both planes making daily flights into the devastated nation.

Darlington Raceway will host its first NASCAR truck race in six years on Aug. 14.

A soccer player who acknowledged he killed a heckling fan last year is back playing for Colombian club Atletico Junior. Javier Florez played 75 minutes Tuesday in an exhibition match.

Rhino Page of Wesley Chapel, Fla., averaged 233.2 for 16 games to take the second-round lead in the Professional Bowlers Association Tournament of Champions at Red Rock Lanes.

Page recorded an 3,371 pinfall to hold a four-pin lead over PBA Hall of Famer Pete Weber of St. Ann, Mo.