Athletics

Athletes and entertainers will come together April 4-7 in Las Vegas   to swing their clubs for charity at the 12th annual Michael Jordan Celebrity Invitational . The star-studded event, in its third year in Las Vegas, will be held at the top-ranked Shadow Creek golf course. Among the celebrities participating for the first time are actor James Denton, country music star Jake Owen, actor Kevin Nealon, Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps and Pro Football Hall of Famer Jerry Rice.

Oakland 7, Dodgers 4 AT THE PLATE: Andre Ethier hit his first home run of the spring, as did Carl Crawford. Crawford's home run was his first since Aug. 3. Perhaps more encouraging was that Crawford played left field for the second consecutive day and had three balls hit to him. "The good thing for us is he made three throws," Dodgers Manager Don Mattingly said. Crawford, who is recovering from elbow surgery, is scheduled to play left field Monday. ON THE MOUND: Josh Beckett had given up only one run in 91/3 innings.

Ben Howland denied a report Saturday night that he had been told he was out as UCLA's basketball coach. Howland said he had not yet spoken to Athletic Director Dan Guerrero, who in the past has handled such personnel moves personally. It is expected that Howland will be replaced, but Yahoo Sports reported that he had already been notified. "Contrary to multiple media reports this evening, UCLA has not fired men's basketball coach Ben Howland," said UCLA Athletics spokesman Nick Ammazzalorso.

AT THE PLATE: Veteran utilityman Jerry Hairston Jr., who started the day with a .174 average, homered and doubled. Hairston said he was never concerned about his slow start. "Especially coming off hip surgery, I wanted to make sure I was healthy and ready for the season," Hairston said. ON THE MOUND: Chris Capuano started in place of Chad Billingsley, who was scratched with a bruised finger on his pitching hand. Capuano had his best performance of the spring, holding the Athletics to a run and five hits over 52/3 innings.

PHOENIX - Yasiel Puig is ready to play in the major leagues. That was the opinion offered Tuesday by fellow Cuban defector Yoenis Cespedes, who finished second in American League rookie-of-the-year balloting last season while leading the Oakland Athletics to a division title. "To me and to anyone who's seen what he's done, he's ready," Cespedes said. Puig is batting .500 for the Dodgers in the Cactus League. The 22-year-old outfielder was four for four in the Dodgers' 7-1 victory over the A's, including a two-run home run in the first inning that cleared Cespedes' head in left field.

PHOENIX - Angels starter Jered Weaver knew it would be a long afternoon when he walked the leadoff hitter on four pitches Saturday. And it went downhill from there with the team's opening-day starter giving up eight runs on six hits - - including three home runs - - in two innings. The Angels eventually rallied to take the lead in the ninth inning, only to give up four more runs in the bottom of the inning to settle for a wild 13-13 tie with the Oakland Athletics at Phoenix Municipal Stadium.

Add another vacancy sign to the USC athletic offices. Michael Cooper is the latest head coach to step down. USC announced his resignation as women's basketball coach Wednesday in a news release quoting Athletic Director Pat Haden as saying, "We believe we should be competing for Pac-12 championships and NCAA bids on a consistent basis. We will conduct a search to find the right person to help us do that. " Haden fired men's basketball coach Kevin O'Neill and baseball coach Frank Cruz in the last couple of months.

Gary Vitti has seen a lot in his 29 years as the Lakers' athletic trainer. This is his most trying season yet. He has felt the weight of the team's struggles, the Lakers standing at 32-31 and tied with Utah for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference despite meteoric expectations. He also experienced the strain in the trainer's room, Pau Gasol and Steve Nash missing a total of 51 games because of injuries, not to mention major hip surgery for Jordan Hill and Steve Blake's 37-game absence because of abdominal and groin issues.

Caroline Wozniacki knows well the perils of dating a famous athlete. She has been the girlfriend of golfer Rory McIlroy for more than a year and the spotlight of fame isn't always a plus. For example last week, when McIlroy quit in the middle of a golf tournament in Florida, and Wozniacki was upset in the first round of a tennis tournament in Malaysia, it was decided by some that it was romantic heartache that caused the corresponding events. "We've been in the media spotlight so long that I've gotten used to that part of it," Wozniacki said Wednesday.