Exhibition Game

SHANGHAI -- It took Jordan Adams just a few minutes to sweep away the bad memories. The freshman guard is supposed to be one of the best shooters on the UCLA basketball team but looked jittery and off-target last weekend at the start of the Bruins' three-game exhibition swing through China. "My first college game wasn't so good," he said. "I didn't want to have another bad one. " On Monday night, Adams turned things around in a hurry, scoring 11 of his team's first 13 points and propelling UCLA to a 72-31 victory against Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

BEIJING -- Don't ask UCLA basketball players about the opponent they will face Saturday night. They haven't seen any videotape. They don't have a scouting report. And they don't really care. As junior Travis Wear put it: "We're just looking forward to getting out there and playing a game. " The Bruins will be facing a team from Tsinghua University in the first of three exhibitions scheduled during a weeklong visit to China. Tsinghua ranks among the most prestigious academic institutions in this country, the campus situated in a former Qing Dynasty imperial garden.

BEIJING — It was no mean feat for Joshua Smith to fit his sizable 6-foot-10 frame into an economy-class seat for the 6,300-mile flight to China. At least the airline put him in the front row of his compartment, so the UCLA center could stretch his white-stockinged feet toward the bathroom door. "It's all right," he said. "They gave me some room. " Of all the challenges UCLA might face on the court during a series of exhibition games here, travel ranks near the top. This trip represents a trial run, the start of what could be an annual exchange between the Pac-12 Conference and the Federation of University Sports of China.

  Not only did Philadelphia Eagles Coach Andy Reid almost lose Michael Vick to a rib injury Monday night, he also had an argument with defensive back Cullen Jenkins on the sideline during Monday night's exhibition game against the New England Patriots. Reid was displeased with the effort the defense gave during a Patriots' scoring drive and let them know about it. That did not sit well with Jenkins, who got up and started yelling back at the coach. After the game, both parties said it was nothing to worry about, just something that happens in the heat of the moment.

An NCAA investigation of Shabazz Muhammad will not be completed in time for the UCLA freshman to travel with the team for a series of exhibition games in China next week. The university confirmed Wednesday that he will remain behind. The 6-foot-6 swingman is the jewel of UCLA's highly touted freshman class. The NCAA is trying to determine whether Muhammad received improper benefits from the brother of an assistant coach at his high school or from a financial planner who helped fund a summer team on which he played.

Below are five things to watch in Team USA's gold-medal match with Spain on Sunday. 1. Will Kobe Bryant have another memorable gold-medal performance? With minutes winding down on the clock, Bryant pursed his lips. He had just drawn a foul on a successful three-pointer with 3:10 remaining that eventually cemented Team USA's 118-107 gold-medal win over Spain in the 2008 Olympics. That play also marked the end of Bryant scoring 13 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter. Will Bryant provide an encore in the 2012 gold-medal game in London?

Who says NFL exhibition games are meaningless? For the first time, a woman will work an NFL game as part of the officiating crew. Shannon Eastin will be part of the replacement crew officiating Thursday's Green Bay-at-San Diego game. Eastin, who's from Arizona, has been a referee for several high school and small-college conferences. The NFL and its regular officials have yet to agree on a new collective-bargaining agreement. Those officials were locked out in June. It's the first such labor meltdown since 2001, when a contract dispute led to the officials missing the last exhibition game and first regular-season game.

Dennis Rodman is always full of surprises. He pulled a huge one during Tuesday's press conference for an NBA "alumni" exhibition game in the Philippines when he invited his father to come watch the following night's game. The two men had been estranged for more than four decades, although Philander Rodman Jr. says he has tried to make contact with his famous son many times since then. But the basketball Hall of Famer surprised his father by telling reporters Tuesday: “I don't hate the guy that brought me into this world.

For much of Tuesday night, Chivas USA appeared to take its quarterfinal matchup in the U.S. Open Cup for what it was — a glorified exhibition game. Goalkeeper Dan Kennedy sat. Other key players joined him for long stretches. It was Chivas' fourth game in 10 days. Fatigue was bound to play a role. And early, it did. By halftime, Chivas had failed to capitalized on nine shots against the Charlotte Eagles of the USL Pro league — the third tier of the North American soccer pyramid.