Iowa City

Cal State Long Beach, which lost its basketball opener to Purdue, 100-53, will play Georgia (2-1) tonight in the Hawkeye tournament at Iowa City, Iowa. Iowa (2-0) will meet Brown (1-2) in the second game. Darrell Faulkner, with 10 points, was Long Beach's only double-figure scorer Tuesday night as the 49ers incurred the second-biggest loss in their history.

Steve Alford was formally introduced as UCLA's basketball coach Tuesday, at center court in Pauley Pavilion. He mentioned John Wooden three times during his first three minutes in the Westwood spotlight. Athletic Director Dan Guerrero noted the "blending the past, present and, of course, the future" of Bruins basketball. Alford, hired away from New Mexico, hopes to live up to UCLA's past, symbols of which were located high above him, where aging national championship banners dangle.

When columnist Mike Hlas of the Cedar Rapids (Iowa) Gazette came west recently to cover the Rose Bowl, he had dinner with George Raveling, USC basketball coach, who spent three years at Iowa before taking over the Trojan program five years ago. They talked about the differences between life in Los Angeles and Iowa City.

He has a rock-star image with an opening-act resume. He was once Hoosiers, but, in the last decade, Gene Hackman has led the exact same number of teams to the Sweet 16. He prides himself on playing Ivy League-smart basketball, which was pretty cool until a couple of weeks ago when his team was knocked out of the NCAA tournament in the first round by, um, Harvard. Of course, regarding Saturday's hiring of Steve Alford as the UCLA basketball coach, there is only one question that matters.

On his third try, Paul Bowers finally built a fence that keeps deer from nibbling every last plant in his garden. But the 7-foot-high chicken-wire fence merely redirects the hungry horde to the rest of his yard. The deer bed down for naps. They browse on shrubbery. They look at Bowers with their big Bambi eyes, then nibble off another tender green twig. "I have a slingshot, and I use that to bean them," Bowers said.

Good luck to San Diego State University. Sorry we couldn't be there. Signed, LaVell Edwards." That message from Brigham Young University's football coach was read by broadcaster Jay Randolph, master of ceremonies at a Monday luncheon honoring San Diego State and Iowa, who play in tonight's Holiday Bowl. Edwards' note signified both the end of his team's dynasty--BYU had won or shared the Western Athletic Conference title the last 10 years--and the rise of the Aztecs behind Coach Denny Stolz.

Steve Alford was formally introduced as UCLA's basketball coach Tuesday, at center court in Pauley Pavilion. He mentioned John Wooden three times during his first three minutes in the Westwood spotlight. Athletic Director Dan Guerrero noted the "blending the past, present and, of course, the future" of Bruins basketball. Alford, hired away from New Mexico, hopes to live up to UCLA's past, symbols of which were located high above him, where aging national championship banners dangle.

James Sutton was working on railroad maintenance gangs out of Chicago when he first saw how blacks were welcomed to this Mississippi River city. As trains arrived, he recalled, police officers would greet disembarking black passengers and "tell them to get back on the train." That was the 1950s, and the technique worked, giving the city that made John Deere tractors and Dubuque hams an ugly reputation among blacks.

The two young men in neat oxford shirts stand on the shady front lawn and hug. Brand-new wedding bands gleam on their ring fingers. Cameras click. They are oblivious. Happy. And legally married. "This is it," Sean Fritz told Tim McQuillan in August, after the rapid-fire ceremony in a Unitarian minister's yard here in the middle of middle America. "I love you." As Iowans ponder whom to support in the Jan.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - The gift bag for politicians who stopped by to chat up Iowa delegates this week included a lapel pin, stationery with a drawing of the state's iconic gold-domed Capitol - and a fold-up map of Iowa's 99 counties, a nod to the fact that the race for the 2016 presidential campaign has begun. The main purpose of the Democratic National Convention was the renomination of President Obama, but outside the convention hall, candidates eyeing the open Democratic primary in 2016 wooed party activists and showered attention on the states that hold the early voting contests.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The gift bag for politicians who stopped by to chat up Iowa delegates at a breakfast Wednesday included a lapel pin, stationery with a drawing of the state's iconic gold-domed Capitol - and a fold-up map of Iowa's 99 counties, a nod to the fact that the race for the 2016 presidential campaign has begun. The main purpose of the Democratic National Convention may be the reelection of President Obama, but outside of the convention hall, candidates eyeing the open Democratic primary in four years are wooing influential party activists and showering attention on the states that hold the early voting contests that can make or break a presidential run. And few states receive as much attention as Iowa, which holds the first-in-the-nation caucuses.

Utah and South Dakota do especially well in the latest listings of best large and small cities for successful aging, with each state landing spots on both lists. In creating the lists, researchers examined 78 factors, selected with the help of an advisory council, that affect the quality of life of senior citizens. Among the factors were healthcare, crime rates and weather but also economic and job conditions, housing, transportation and social engagement factors, according to a statement accompanying the release of the rankings on Tuesday.

Eric Brightwell grew up in small places - a tiny town in Iowa, rural Missouri, a Florida suburb whose nearby city he barely got the chance to visit. When he first saw Los Angeles on a post-college road trip in 1998, its hugeness floored him. There were so many people from so many countries, so many wildly different experiences within reach. In Koreatown, he tasted fermented beans. On Olvera Street, he followed a familiar voice to find Mr. Sulu from "Star Trek," George Takei, posing with a donkey for tourists.

1. Boise State, fresh off Virginia Tech's crushing loss to James Madison, tries to keep its national title hopes alive with a dangerous trip to Laramie to face Wyoming. Broncos Coach Chris Petersen feared this game almost as much as the season opener against Virginia Tech. 2. Florida at Tennessee should be a good measuring stick for how good Oregon is this year. The Ducks just left Neyland Stadium with a 48-13 victory over the Volunteers, so it will be interesting to see what kind of number No. 10 Florida can post.

Iowa's Kirk Ferentz sounded like a coach with a sinking feeling. Last week, when the Hawkeyes were still undefeated yet dropped one spot (to No. 8) in the Associated Press media poll after an 18-point victory over Indiana, the Iowa sports information office set out a snippy e-mail asking reporters to "get the facts straight on Iowa football." Ferentz didn't pile on. "Usually the first team to complain is the first team to get beat," he said. Funny how that works out. Northwestern scrambled Iowa's national championship hopes Saturday, first knocking out its quarterback and then knocking off the Hawkeyes, 17-10.

Activision Blizzard Inc. acquired Budcat Creations, the developer of games for Wii consoles that's helping the company with its new Guitar Hero title. Budcat, based in Iowa City, Iowa, has worked on several versions of Guitar Hero, Santa Monica-based Activision said. Terms weren't disclosed. The acquisition strengthens Activision's ability to develop games for Nintendo Co.'s Wii and hand-held DS player. Budcat, now a unit of Activision, will stay in Iowa City with its management team intact.

Activision Blizzard Inc. acquired Budcat Creations, the developer of games for Wii consoles that's helping the company with its new Guitar Hero title. Budcat, based in Iowa City, Iowa, has worked on several versions of Guitar Hero, Santa Monica-based Activision said. Terms weren't disclosed. The acquisition strengthens Activision's ability to develop games for Nintendo Co.'s Wii and hand-held DS player. Budcat, now a unit of Activision, will stay in Iowa City with its management team intact.

* at Iowa 38, Wisconsin 16: Shonn Greene rushed for a career-high 217 yards and four touchdowns, and the Hawkeyes (5-3, 2-2) pounded the reeling Badgers (3-4, 0-4) at Iowa City and sent them to their first 0-4 start in the Big Ten since 1996. Greene had touchdown runs of 52, 34, 34, and 12 yards for Iowa, which has answered a three-game losing streak with a pair of blowout wins. He became the first Iowa player to rush for four touchdowns since Tavian Banks did it against Iowa State in 1997.